The Biggest Battle of their Mutant Lives
by Dory's human replica
Summary: The final battle with Shredder is approaching fast...can the turtles beat him once and for all? And can they overcome the pain in their group as Shredder tries to eliminate them? PG-13 for violence and language. COMPLETE.
1. Default Chapter

**Summary:** The Final Battle with Shredder is approaching…can the Turtles stop him once and for all? And will they be able to keep the group together through the pain?

**Disclaimer:** I want them all yet I own none…all credit and all hail to the creators of TMNT!!!!!!!!!!!!!

**A/N: - **  Hello! Enjoy this story! Please READ AND REVIEW! If you do then I will update as soon as I can! Thank you so much…if you've read this far then I like you already! See you at the next chapter….xxxxxxxx…………

"Mikey! What are you doing?" Raphael yelled at his brother.

"Trying to fix the T.V…Donnatello won't do it. He's too _busy_ to even think about helping me." Michelangelo replied.

"Ok, and what's Donnie doing?"

"Talking to Leo and Master Splinter."

"And we're not to be included…why?"

"Because Master Splinter only wanted to speak to them…it's 'cause they're the clever ones, I bet!"

"Yeah, probably…but something's not right about this…"

"MIKEY! RAPH! COME ON!" Leo rushed past, Katanas already strapped to his back. Donnie wasn't far behind him. Raph and Mikey grabbed their weapons, bewildered, and ran after their brothers.

    Little did any of them know, they were about to face the biggest battle of their lives……………

    The Turtles arrived at an old warehouse. It was large and unsteady, it's rusting metal doors creaking as the wind blew them open slightly. The whistling of the wind and the spattering of the rain did little to make the Turtles feel braver. They were frightened of what might be waiting for them in such a large place. Stepping cautiously inside, they moved forward…but suddenly, the door slammed shut behind them and about fifty dark shadows began to close in around them.

"GOT YOU!" a voice echoed round the building, "At last, I have all four of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles…it has been too long!" Shredder revealed himself, "I have _hired_ a company of ninjas to fight you for me. It's a bit of extra training for them, and I'm sure it will be interesting to finally see your skills matched! NINJAS, ATTACK THEM! KILL THEM ALL!" and Shredder fled, leaving the Turtles alone to face his ninja army.

    The fight began and all the brothers were split from one another as they tried to fend off the ninjas. There were many different canisters of oil lying around, as well as old staircases made from a now rusting metal; shelves piled high with glass bottles and jars; tanks filled with fuels and other toxic substances and many more health hazards.

    Michelangelo was in a heated battle with one ninja who didn't want to die! The ninja repeatedly aimed for Michelangelo's head with a long Bo staff. Mikey continued to duck as two more ninjas joined the fray. Leo, seeing about twenty more ninjas heading for his unfortunate brother, called over and about fifteen of the ninjas went chasing after him. Mikey gazed up at his brother and gave him a nod of gratitude.

  Meanwhile, Donnatello was fighting off thirteen ninjas and more were appearing every second. He received a nasty blow to the head and went down, ninjas kicking at him and hitting him with their Bo sticks…his own was out of reach as it had been knocked out of his hand. He knew the death blow would be coming any time soon. He tried to curl into a more protective position but couldn't find the strength. Suddenly, an angry yell pierced the air and Raphael stormed into the centre of the cluster of ninjas that were in the process of beating up his brother.

"NOOOOOOO!" Raph screeched as he threw off each ninja in turn; there was no stopping Raphael when he was this angry...

   Two staircases up, Leonardo was trying to prevent himself from being pushed over the edge and into all the canisters of oil a long way below, on the same level as the others. Leo struck another fatal blow with his left Katana before being caught off guard with a sharp whack across the back off the head. He shook himself out of his daze but found he was completely surrounded on all sides.

    Below him, Michelangelo noticed what was going on and began fighting his way towards the stairs. He _had_ to reach Leo before the ninjas beat him. He began climbing the stairs, engaging in a short battle with every ninja that tried to stop him and throwing them off. But, as he reached the top and started making his way towards his struggling brother, Leonardo was beaten to the floor by a flurry of blades and staffs. Leo wasn't to be beaten that easily, though. The Turtle swung his Katanas round and slashed at the ninjas attacking him…but was knocked off balance by a ninja springing at him. Hanging over the edge, Leonardo was barely able to strap his Katanas onto his back but he had to so he could get a firmer grip and pull himself to safety. The ninja, however, had other ideas; He raised his staff and brought it down on Leo's head. Things began to spin as Michelangelo distracted the ninja's attention, giving Leo a chance to pull himself back up…but he couldn't. His head ached and everything was out of focus. His hands slipped and he fell into the massive piles of canisters below him. They toppled and fell, burying Leo and causing a deafening noise.

    The remaining ninjas fled and Shredder was nowhere to be seen. Donnatello had regained consciousness and took on the job of finding Leonardo. The others joined the search and they found a battered, unconscious and barely alive Leo trapped underneath a huge canister. Desperate to free him, they panicked and did not realise that a fire had been started and that if they remained at the canisters much longer then they would be blown up by an enormous raging fireball. They finally freed Leonardo and Raphael supported him as they tried to find a way out. The flames were dancing in front of them at the main exit so they headed towards the back of the warehouse. Leo could barely walk and was having trouble breathing as they tried to get out of the burning warehouse. They had about a minute before the place would be blown up by the ignition of the toxic substances that would have been used to power the Techno-drome. They finally found a window and managed to get out of the warehouse and behind a large lorry split seconds before the building blew up.

"Phew! That was so close!" Mikey laughed in relief, temporarily forgetting Leo.

"Guys?" Raphael interjected, "We need to get back to the lair…and fast…I don't know how much longer Leo will be able to hold out…his time is running out."

  As if on cue, Leo's legs completely gave out and he slumped against Raphael, gasping shallowly for air.

"Let's go!" Donnie said, jumping up a little too fast and swaying on the spot. Mikey grabbed him and the four Turtles made their way slowly back to their lair in the sewers.

"My Goodness!" Master Splinter exclaimed upon seeing Mikey and Donnie return, "What happened? Did you defeat Shredder and destroy the Techno-drome fuel?"

"Yes, Master Splinter, we did…but at a price."

"Where are Raphael and Leonardo? Are they alright?"

"Raphael is fine but Leonardo…well…isn't…" Mikey stammered as the other two Turtles stumbled through the door. Raph just about managed to help Leo onto the couch before he collapsed in an armchair, exhausted.

"Leonardo! What on Earth happened to him?" Master Splinter's face was creased in concern for his student.

"He fell…" gasped Raph, "Is he gonna be ok?"

"I'm not sure…he may have suffered internal damage and he has already lost too much blood. I cannot do much for him. I will do what I can but after that he will have to heal himself."

"Raph…?" Leo groaned, wincing as he tried to move.

"What is it?" Raph asked.

"Did…Shredder…?"

"Get away? Yeah, he did, but he's gonna pay for what him and his stupid army have done to you!" Raph clenched his fists in rage. Leo tried to smile but couldn't find the strength. He coughed and choked slightly and then fell into a state representing a coma more than anything else. Master Splinter gestured for the other Turtles to leave. Donnie and Mikey went to find April while Raph decided he needed to talk to Casey and said he would meet them back at the lair in a couple of hours.

"April? You in?" Donnie called, knocking on the door.

"Yeah, come on in, guys." April opened the door for them and they seated themselves on her couch. Donnie put his head in his hands and Mikey went to raid the fridge, which made April a little annoyed as he hadn't even asked if he could go and raid her kitchen. She moved to say something but a little voice inside her head was telling her she shouldn't stop him and that he needed the comfort food. So, she left them to their own devices. She had a shower and came back afterwards to find both of her Mutant friends sat in silence…Mikey was just staring at the food and not eating it while Donnatello just stared at a wall.

"Ok, guys, what's going on? You come here and then just sit in silence…if you want to meditate and stare at food then can't you do it in the lair? I mean, it's not that I don't like your company but, at the moment, you're not exactly being co-operative! Lighten up! Where are Raphael and Leonardo?"

"Raph went to talk to Casey and Leo's back at the lair."

"Oh, so they didn't want to visit me," April joked, but it wasn't funny, "I'm insulted…what am I? Boring to talk to?"

"Nah, Casey is the only one who will let Raph fight him today and it's better if Raph let's all his anger out…if he was here it would just be building up."

"But you have a training place, and a fridge, at the lair!"

"We got thrown out by Master Splinter."

"Then why's Leo still there? Unless he's being a suck-up or sitting outside the lair in protest, I can't see why he'd stay."

    Donnie got up and muttered something about needing fresh air and left Mikey to tell April…not a job Mikey relished very much!

"Mikey? What's happened?"

"We were at an old warehouse to stop Shredder from getting his hands on the toxic substance that could be used as a fuel for the Techno-drome."

"And?" April urged him on.

"We were ambushed by Shredder and a load of ninjas…they were everywhere; Up the stairs, behind tanks…there was no getting out. Leo was on a platform with a load of them and they were closing in. I tried to get there but I wasn't fast enough. I guess it's my fault, what happened."

"And what did happen?"

"They forced him over the edge and he fell…into loads of oil canisters which buried him. The ninjas fled and started a fire on their way out. We found Leo trapped under a massive canister. We freed him and got out the back entrance and hid behind a lorry until the warehouse had blown up…then we returned to the lair."

"Oh my God! Is he gonna be ok?"

"We don't know; Master Splinter is with him now."

    Raphael was sat in Casey's lounge. He had beaten the punch-bag and was waiting for Casey to arrive home.

"Raphael! To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?"

"Haha, Casey, I'm splitting my sides."

"That's not the only thing you've split!" Casey glanced at the punch-bag mournfully and sat next to his friend. When Raphael had explained everything Casey grabbed him and they started towards April's house to join the other Turtles.

    Master Splinter was taking a short break from his Turtle-sitting and was in the kitchen getting a drink. He suddenly felt a strange sensation in the pit of his stomach…something was wrong...

_"Leonardo!" _he gasped rushing to his injured student's side. Leo's breathing was slowing and he was struggling more and more with every breath he took. Splinter had to do something…and fast! He sat down and began reaching for his student's mind. He found it but Leo was slipping away. Somewhere in the distance, a door opened. The others were back.

    Donnie quickly understood what was happening and held his brothers and their human friends back, keeping them silent. After about half an hour, Splinter gave a long sigh and collapsed on the spot. Raphael picked up his Master and put him in a chair. Donnie and Mikey edged cautiously towards their comatose brother, fearing the worst. To their relief, Leonardo was breathing, albeit shallowly, but he still looked as if he was fighting a battle against the pain which was threatening his life. Donnie turned back to April and Casey, who were frozen in horror a little way off. Casey's eyes were burning with the same anger Raphael had held earlier. April's eyes, however, were glistening with tears. She had nearly cried when Donnie and Mikey had turned up at her apartment with Donnie completely covered in cuts and bruises, but now she was too shocked to do, or say, anything. Raphael put a hand on Casey's shoulder and then moved to join his two other despairing brothers, who were sat by the bed. Sure, Leo was a bit too bossy sometimes and he was clever, funny, strong (emotionally and physically), foolish in moderation, obsessive, interesting and talented which annoyed the others seeing as Leo was a total suck-up to their teacher; but he was their brother and they loved him too much to let him go…they would _make_ him recover…but they weren't sure how!!!!

    "I'm sorry, Raphael," Casey sighed later that night when he awoke to the sound of his friend's cursing (he tripped over an old pizza box and was insulting Michelangelo with every curse there was!!!!), "I know it must be really hard for you at the moment, what with Leonardo and everything, but I want you to admit you need help and accept mine. I know you're proud and you have honour but you've even been refusing the help of your brothers…and you might want to pay a little more attention to Donnatello…"

"What do you mean by that?" Raph spun round.

"He's not sleeping well at nights; I've heard him. His bruises are not healing as well as they should due to lack of sleep and malnutrition…he's suffering more than you know."

"What?"

"He needs your help, Raph. Mikey's trying his best and so are April and Master Splinter but you need to help as well." Casey turned to go back to his room but had a small afterthought, "and don't think I haven't noticed..."

"Noticed what?"

"Just get some sleep Raph…we all know you need it!" Casey left, smiling. If that didn't get to him then he didn't know what would!

"Morning, everyone," April yawned.

"Morning," came the chorus of replies.

"Where's Master Splinter?"

"Meditating," Donnatello shrugged absent-mindedly. His hands were shaking as he attempted to pour tea for everyone. With a quick glance at Casey, Raphael got up and went to his aid. Donnie looked surprised but thankful, nevertheless.

"Donnie, go get some sleep!" Raph pushed his brother in the direction of the bedrooms, "then you're going to have a proper meal…not pizza…and some water and then you're going to sleep again, or at least relax in front of the T.V. or something instead of doing so much work."

"But -----"

"No buts," Raph shut Donnie in his room and went back to the table, "what?" he asked the amused onlookers.

"I can see it now, man," Mikey grinned, "Raphael, the caring mother hen…never thought I'd be able to put those words in a sentence together without a negative!"

"Aw, shuttit, Mikey!" Raphael threw a pizza slice at Mikey, who ducked and came up laughing. Donnie had stayed in his room which meant, for once, he had decided that there was no point in pushing it further…and he was exhausted…

"MIKEY! COME HERE, RIGHT NOW!" Donnie and Raph screeched later that afternoon. They were staring, wide-eyed, at the television screen when Michelangelo came running into the room, flanked by Casey, Master Splinter and April.

"What is it, my turtles?" Master Splinter inquired.

"The warehouse…it's on T.V.!"

"Oh, yeah, sorry," April stammered slowly, "I did a report on the fire for Channel 6!"

"WHAT?!" yelled Donnie, Raph and Mikey, glaring at her.

"I thought it would be a good story! And, anyway, what's wrong? I didn't mention you or the real cause of the fire, so why are you upset?"

"April, it's a sensitive subject! We all nearly died there and you're joking about it in the report as if it was all just another fire. You said 'no-body got hurt' and that 'with the scum we've got in this city, then who would care anyway?' You even said _you_, personally, wouldn't care! I can't believe you!"

"Look, Raph, I'm sorry, ok? I thought you wouldn't mind and I wouldn't care if any of the druggies that usually hang round dumps like that got killed or injured! But I never said anything about you!"

"But you must've realised it would hurt to see it on T.V. with Leo on the edge of death in the very same room!"

"I didn't think you'd be watching!"

"Oh, so now it's a behind our backs thing, is it? You thought you might stop us watching when it was on, did you?"

"No…Look, I promise that next time --------"

"THERE WON'T BE A 'NEXT TIME', APRIL! LEO MIGHT NOT EVEN MAKE IT THROUGH 'THIS TIME!' WHY CAN'T YOU RESPECT OUR FEELINGS? IS IT BECAUSE WE'RE MUTANTS?"

"NO!" April screamed at Raph and then turned on her heels and flounced out.

"Way to go, Raph," Mikey muttered sarcastically but his enraged brother had already pushed past him and into their training room, where he attacked the punch-bag so viciously that it would've have been sent flying by the blows had it not been securely attached to the ceiling.

    That night, Donnie couldn't sleep. He kept remembering the scene at the warehouse. He saw the ninjas; he saw Leo fall. He remembered digging through the canisters except, this time, when he found Leo he wasn't breathing. Donnatello cried out into the emptiness of the night. If things were normal, Leonardo would've been sleeping in the bunk below him, but now, when Donnie looked as he climbed down the ladder, it was empty.

    He made his way out into the living area and over to Leonardo, who looked no better, and sat down on the bed. Taking one of Leo's cold hands into his own, Donnie tried to fight back the tears that wanted to be released. When he could hold them back no longer, they overflowed, blurring his vision. Donnie didn't even see Raphael come in. He only noticed the presence of his brother in red when a comforting hand was laid on his shoulder. Looking round, Donnie managed a shaky smile which was, equally shakily, returned. Suddenly, and most unexpectedly, they heard a small rustle and a moan behind them. Donnie grabbed Leo's hand again and span round while Raph nearly fell off the bed in surprise. Donnatello sent Raphael to fetch Michelangelo, Casey and Master Splinter.

"Leo, can you hear me?" Donnie whispered.

    No answer but Donnie felt his hand squeezed tightly. Master Splinter was in the room now and was reaching out for his injured student's mind once more.

_Leonardo, come back to us._

_Why? It will only hurt more than it does now._

_Because your brothers need you; you have had us in a mad frenzy since they brought you back from the warehouse._

_I can't…it hurts when I try…_

_Stop being so foolish and just come back…we can help ease your physical pain but the emotional pain you are putting yourself and the others through at the moment is not necessary._

"Master Splinter?" Leo's voice was hoarse as he opened his eyes, blearily.

"Welcome back, Leonardo," his Master said, smiling softly at his student.

"Leo! You're ok!" Donnie sighed in relief, relaxing his stance.

"Ok isn't exactly the word I'd use……" Mikey said, looking at the tired and pain-filled eyes of his brother in blue.

"Awake, then," Donnie corrected almost irritably, "But we thought you were gonna die!" Donnie said to his brother, sitting beside him, tears threatening to come again.

"Well, I didn't, did I?" Leo winced and smiled at the same time, recognising the danger signs of a Donnatello despair disaster. Mikey let out the breath he had been holding, thanking Leonardo silently for sparing them from another blubbering session; Donnie always had been the over-emotional one when it came to things like this…or maybe Mikey just had more faith in their Master's healing abilities…

"It was an unfair bet!" Raph argued at Casey, who was holding his hand out expectantly.

"No, it wasn't. Now, you owe me ten bucks, Raphael!" Casey noticed the others all watching, "What? I bet ten bucks that Leonardo would live and I was right, wasn't I?"

"Yeah," Raph moaned, "but I was in a really bad mental state of desperation, so it wasn't fair! You didn't even see how bad it was at the warehouse!" Raph reluctantly handed over the ten bucks he owed Casey and saw Leo's eyes filled with agony from the memories. Realising what he'd just said, Raph clamped a hand over his mouth, "Sorry, Leo, I didn't mean to --------"

"It's ok," Leo smiled, tiredly, "Do you think I could get some sleep now?"

"Aw, I wanted to watch T.V.!" Mikey protested.

"Ok, well, I'll go back to my room." He made as if to stand up and Donnie rushed in for support. There was no way Leonardo would be able to walk on his own after days of not doing it and being covered in injuries. Leo clung to Donnie as if his life depended on it and the made their way slowly to their room and, once in bed, Leo was asleep in seconds. Donnie smiled at his sleeping brother, who had turned onto his front with his head towards the wall. It made him feel better to know his brother was conscious again and not in a coma anymore; but for Leonardo the pain was about to get much, much worse……


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:- ** Hiyaz, I am posting this next chapter for all of you but especially for Lioness-Goddess for being my first reviewer – and yes, lorry is another word for truck! Thanks again and keep reviewing!!!!!

  Leonardo awoke at about 7:00am next morning and went to find himself some breakfast but all there was in the fridge was leftover pizza with cheese and strawberry sauce on top. Usually, Leo would've eaten this without hesitation but today he didn't feel like pizza. He rummaged for something else and eventually found some bread and butter. However, he obviously wasn't ready to stomach food yet as he gagged as soon as the food was in his mouth. He rushed outside the lair and retched into the sewer water. Donnatello had heard his brother leave the bedroom and followed him. When Leonardo came up from being sick, Donnatello grabbed his swaying brother and supported him as he helped Leo limp back into the lair.

"You should take it easy! Splinter said you're not allowed to eat anything for forty-eight hours after you wake up…that was yesterday so you shouldn't really eat until tomorrow early evening."

"Ok, so am I allowed to drink or is that forbidden too?"

"Nah, you're allowed to drink."

"Phew, that's good!" Leo laughed, but stopped short with a wince.

"You ok?" Donnatello asked, leaning over and putting a hand on Leo's shell.

"Yeah, I'm fine; you go and see the movie with Raph and Mikey."

"Ok…if you're sure," Donnie left with the others, who were now wide awake and ready to go. Casey and April also left, deciding it would be better if they gave the turtles a bit of time to recover.

    Three hours later, the three Turtles came home after the movie, laughing and joking, but were in for a shock. The lair was wrecked. Things were turned over and there was no sign of Splinter or Leonardo. Donnatello, Raphael and Michelangelo searched the lair for their brother and their Master. Michelangelo searched the living area and was suddenly sprung upon by Leo and threw him off thinking he was an enemy. Realising his mistake, he rushed over to his brother and knelt beside him, helping him to sit up.

"I'm so sorry, dude! I didn't know who you were for a minute!"

"It's…ok…Mikey, they took…Splinter…" Leo collapsed into Mikey's arms, and Mikey hugged his brother. But he noticed a nasty wound on the back of Leo's head and neck. It was a deep welt obviously inflicted by a whip. There were several more on his arms and legs. Mikey put a cushion behind Leonardo's head and went for some water. When he had warm water and a cloth, he began to clean and bandage the worst of his brother's wounds.

"I can't find Master Splinter or Leo anywhere!" Raph raged into the room, slamming his fist against a wall.

"Me neither…they've just dis--------LEO!" Donnie rushed forwards and took his unconscious brother's head into his arms.

"He told me that whoever attacked this place took Splinter."

"And who did attack this place?" Raph asked.

"Leo passed out…he didn't tell me…" Mikey began tidying up the lair and re-stacking the pizza boxes he'd been saving for years…he was trying for a world record. Leonardo had told him it was a bad idea but Mikey was sure Leo was wrong about that, even if he was right about everything else.

"Ouch…that hurt…" Leo rubbed his head as he sat up.

"We can't leave you on your own for a second, can we, dude?" Mikey joked.

"Hey, leave me alone already!" Leo tried to lightly punch his brother in orange on the arm but only succeeded in hurting himself further!

"Hey, I only meant that you're supposed to be the leader…the movies was no fun without you! Don't hurt yourself, man!"

    That night, all four turtles sat in the living area and were formulating a plan to rescue their Master. They were guessing that Shredder and the remaining ninjas were the attackers…Leo had been shoved in a closet before he could tell…and that Splinter would be at the Techno-drome. They agreed to set off instantly and tried to convince Leo to stay. Needless to say, it didn't work and he insisted on going with them.

   Creeping through the sewers, in the direction of the techno-drome, they began to wonder if they were actually going the right way. Their concern for their master and their brother had caused their minds to be elsewhere and that didn't help matters much.

    Eventually, they found the techno-drome and were sneaking round to the side when there was a gigantic rumble and the ground shook, knocking the four of them off balance. Helping each other up, they continued to make their way round the techno-drome but were confronted by Shredder before they could get inside.

"So, you thought you could stop the techno-drome?"

"Yes," growled Raphael, moving slightly in front of his brothers. He charged and was thrown to the side and knocked unconscious. Next went Mikey and he held off Shredder while Raph came round and Donnie literally dragged Leo away to try and get into the techno-drome. If Leo got into a fight with Shredder then the consequences, for Leonardo, would be dire.

"What are you doing?" Leo struggled against Donnie's grip but Donnie just clamped a hand over Leo's mouth to shut him up before he got them discovered.

"Shut up, Leo! We all agreed, meaning me, Raph and Mikey, that you can't fight Shredder. He'd kill you before you even had a chance to attack."

"No, he wouldn't! What do we have to do, then?"

"Get inside the techno-drome and then find Master Splinter."

"I hope Sensei's ok," Leo trailed off, casting his gaze down to the floor.

"He will be fine. Now, let's go…Mikey and Raph won't be able to hold Shredder off forever."

"Remind me again why we can't just kill him and have done with it?"

"Because…Donnie and Leo need time to find Sensei and get him out!"

"Oh, ok…wow! You listened for once!"

"I always listen," Mikey retorted.

"Whatever, Mikey," Raph aimed a high kick at Shredder but Shredder blocked him and threw him into a rocky ledge. Mikey growled and charged at Shredder but he, too, was thrown away like rubbish. Shredder, looking pleased, turned back to the techno-drome and entered it.

 Donnie and Leo dropped into the fifth room they had searched so far and they finally found the right one. Their Master was chained to the wall and, with one swipe of his Katanas, Leo freed him. Donnie kept a lookout by the door and then helped Splinter out and the three of them made their way out of the techno-drome. However, they didn't get far before they were confronted by Shredder and twenty foot soldiers. Leo and Donnie fought bravely but it was not enough. Then, a foot soldier threw a smoke bomb at Leo's feet and it burst into flames. He yelled and jumped backwards, fear shining in his eyes. Donnie cried out and rushed to his frozen brother's aid. He shook Leo out of his daze and the two of them used the smoke as cover to sneak past the foot soldiers and they got out and dragged their two dizzy brothers to their feet and made a speedy escape back to the lair.

"Sensei, are you alright?" Raph asked, anxiously once they were safely back at the lair.

"I am fine, thank-you, Raphael. But now, I suggest we meditate."

"Aw, man! Sensei, do we have to?"

"Yeah, come on, man! You have got to give us a break." Mikey agreed with Raph.

"Why? Give me three good reasons."

"Number one: you've had a traumatic day. Number two: We just saved you. Number three: Leo looks half-dead over there…I'm certain he needs a break!"

"Alright…but tomorrow you will meditate."

"Very well, Sensei."

"Now, get some sleep."

    Raph and Mikey left instantly before Master Splinter could change his mind. They were closely followed by Donnie and Leo. Donnie climbed into the top bunk and fell asleep almost instantly. In the bottom bunk, Leo's head was aching and his eyes wanted to close. He fell asleep and was consumed in a deep sleep.

    Leo awoke at 7 O'clock the next morning to the sound of Donnie falling out of the top bunk. He groaned and opened his eyes. Donatello was sprawled out on the floor looking extremely comical but guilty when he saw Leo staring at him.

"Sorry," he apologised as he scrambled to his feet, "I didn't mean to wake you!"

"Don't worry about it…I should've been up by now anyway."

"What?"

"I hate sleeping in; you know that!" Leo got out of bed and he and Donnie made their way to the kitchen for breakfast. They helped themselves to the leftover pizza from the night before. Mikey was supposed to give April a shopping list but he evidently hadn't! Grimacing as they ate the cold, chocolate topped, pizza, Donnie felt a wave of fear rush over him.

"Don? What is it?" Leo asked, staring into his brother's anxious face.

"Nothing…I just – I just keep dreaming about the night at the warehouse and how Shredder's army nearly killed you." Leo shuddered at the words.

"Donnie – you should stop worrying about it…he didn't kill me and he never will!"

"How can you be so sure? And I can't stop worrying because you're still worrying. It shows, Leo, and you can't hide the fact that you're not sleeping well at night! Please, tell me what keeps haunting you!"

"It's the fall…when I fell from the high platform…I keep seeing it in my mind…"

"Mikey blames himself for that."

"I know, and he can't hide it either! I guess Raph is the only one holding us together…"

"Not really…he was close to tears when we found you…and the only time he's ever cried before was when Splinter said you might die after you were ambushed that time, remember?"

"He cried?"

"Yeah, he thought we were gonna lose you…and he knows he can be a jerk sometimes but he just wants a normal life…"

"Something we'll never have," Leo sighed. His brothers were all equally troubled by the recent events…and Raph had cried last Christmas? Leo had never known that…but that would explain why Raph had been so over-protective ever since. Smiling, Leo looked up as his other two brothers walked into the room. His family. And they would get through whatever was thrown at them…as a team…no matter what…

"Hey, guys, you ok?"

"Yeah, we're fine, Mikey…what about you?"

"Yeah, dudes, we're fine."

"Sure?" Leo studied his hands as he casually asked Mikey.

"Yeah, jeez, what is this? Operation Interrogation of Mikey?"

"Wow, long words for you!" Raph snorted and received a glare from the two turtles sat at the table, "What?" he raised his hands in mock surrender.

"Can't you just give it a break?" Donnie sighed.

"Why should I?" Raphael retorted, slamming a fist onto the table, "I'm going to Casey's." Raph stomped out of the room. Leo sighed, rolling his eyes to the ceiling.

"I'd better go after him…Casey doesn't deserve to handle Raph on his own…he'll be torn apart!"

    Leo followed Raph to Casey's and waited outside the door.

"Casey, I don't know what to do!"

"What do you mean?"

"They all want me to stop being s aggressive but I can't…I hide behind my aggression. It's a part of me; the way I am."

   Outside, Leo listened, hoping to solve some of the problems between the four brothers at the moment.

"But how are you guys all coping? Is everything getting back to normal?"

"Slowly…"

"Are the others ok?"

"Mikey's still blaming himself for what happened but is getting better. Donnie is coping as best he can by pouring his heart into his research…out of all of us, I'd say he was coping the best."

"And Leo?" Casey asked. Outside the apartment, Leo held his breath.

"I don't know…I'm worried about him…he's only ever been through something like that once before…when he was ambushed by Shredder and nearly died. I don't know…I think he hates me…"

"I don't hate you!" Leo burst into the room, causing Raphael to leap up and Casey to fall over. Leo froze and bit his lip…his cover was blown!


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: -** Yes, I _want_ to own the Turtles…but unfortunately wanting to own them isn't enough 'cause I _don't _own them; they belong to the dudes who created them (Kev and Pete!).

**A/N: -**   This chapter was difficult to do because although I already had it typed I couldn't decide whereabouts to finish it…I'm hoping that you enjoy it. There may be a couple of moments where you feel certain Turtles may be a little OOC but I promise that, if there are any moments like that, it is because of the extreme pressure they're going through.

**    They nearly lost a brother and so Raph, being the violent one, wants revenge and is over-protective of Leo…takes you back to Shredder Strikes Back (1 2) and Tales of Leo…which, by the way, I have _never _seen…crazy, huh? So, if someone knows where to find the scripts for it or knows a place where I can get it on DVD slightly cheaper than normal then it would be greatly appreciated! Thank you, now read, enjoy and review!**

    Raph moved towards him slowly, a mad glint in his eyes. Casey scrambled up from where he had fallen over the back of the sofa and decided to only get involved if it looked like there was going to be a full-scale fight between the two turtles in his living room.

"What are you doing here, Leo?"

"I volunteered to come after you and stop you ripping Casey apart. You got a problem with that, Raph?"

"Yes."

"Oh dear, that's a shame, but I couldn't let you come and take your anger out on Casey when he has done nothing wrong…and Mikey and Donnie agree."

"I'm gonna kill them!" Raph snarled.

"Why?"

"Because they were supposed to stop you leaving the lair…"

"What's the point, Raph?"

"The point is that you haven't fully recovered…you nearly died, Leo!"

"I know, but you can't keep me locked up forever…eventually the final battle with Shredder will fall upon us and we'll all have to fight!"

"But why? What can't we just stop this stupid fighting?"

"Raph…" Leo pleaded.

"No, I'm serious, Leo. I wouldn't be able to risk losing you again."

"It could have been any one of us on that platform, Raph, and next time one of us could die…any one of us…it doesn't mean it will be me just because it was me this time." Leo tried to explain to his brother that it wasn't planned by the ninjas to knock him off the platform as they would have done the same if one of the others had been on the platform instead of Leo.

"I should go…" Raph said, "you coming, Leo?"

"Yeah…thanks for letting us talk things over in here, Casey!"

"Hey, its fine, guys…just promise me you'll take it easy…both of you…" he looked meaningfully at Raphael. The two turtles waved at him as they left.

    The two brothers were getting close to the lair when they were sprung upon by about twenty-five foot ninjas, accompanied by none other than Shredder himself.

"Shredder!" Leo gasped, choking slightly on the words as fear gripped him. Raphael moved closer to his trembling brother and drew his Sais.

"We'll get him,"

"Don't, Raph, we need to concentrate on getting away." Leo put himself into 'fearless leader' mode.

"Now, you both die!" Shredder stepped forward.

"I don't think so, Shred-head! You're gonna pay for what you and you're stupid army did to my brother and for the effect it has had on our family!"

"Really…foot ninjas…CAPTURE HIM! AND KILL THE OTHER ONE!"

"LEO! RUN! GET THE OTHERS!"

"Raph! Don't be an idiot! I can fight!"

"Just go for help…the lair isn't far!" Raph began to fight off the ninjas attempting to get at Leonardo. Leo ran for the lair and was metres from the entrance when the foot caught up with him.

"DONNIE! MIKEY! MASTER SPLINTER!" he shrieked at the top of his voice.

"Heads up, Leo!" Mikey hurtled towards him on a skateboard.

"Go and find Raph! He's not far from here…I'll catch up as soon as I can."

"Ok, Donnie and Master Splinter are on their way." Mikey sped off. Leo defeated the foot ninjas after him and headed back to where Mikey, Raph, Donnie and Splinter were fighting as hard as they could. He joined them and helped in the fight, in spite of Raph's protest. Suddenly, Shredder leapt into the middle of the turtles, leaving Mikey and Leo one side with Donnie and Raph the other. Master Splinter was nowhere to be seen. Raph took the first lunge at Shredder but was thrown off almost instantly. Leo went next but he, too, was thrown off and flew through the air and into Raph. Mikey and Donnie attacked together but were thrown in completely different directions. Shredder made his way towards a fallen Mikey and raised a long sword.

"Now you can die," Shredder whispered, bringing his sword down, only to find it intercepted by a large, furry rat.

"You shall not touch any of my sons, least of all those you have set out to kill."

"I want them all dead."

"Exactly…you have no right to attack them when they have done nothing."

"They refused to join my army."

"Why are you so surprised?" Splinter asked. Shredder growled and pulled out a short dagger. He turned and hurled it in the direction of Leonardo with a surprising accuracy. Mikey, who had crept away from his Master and Shredder, cried out and threw himself at Leo. He knocked the stunned turtle out of the line of the dagger and the two of them tumbled along and Donnie and Raph caught their arms as they were about to fall into a massive roadwork hole. Pulling their brothers up, they hugged them fiercely.

    Meanwhile, Splinter was in a heated battle with Shredder and he eventually landed in front of them.

"We must leave. The battle is over, for tonight. Shredder left and we must return home. Come," he walked off. The five of them reached the lair and Mikey and Leo remained outside.

"You ok, bro?" Leo asked his brother.

"Yeah, what about you, dude?"

"I'm fine…but I wouldn't have been if it weren't for you…you saved my life, Mike." Leo smiled at his brother in orange and Mikey looked slightly embarrassed.

"It was nothing; least I could do…I let ya down last time…"

"No, you didn't…it wasn't your fault, no matter what you might think."

"Really? So you're not mad at me?"

"I was never mad at you! What gave you that idea?"

"I dunno…I guess I just got a bit paranoid after the incident at the warehouse."

"You got that right…come on…let's go inside."

"Yeah," Mikey and Leo headed inside.

  "You guys ok?" Donnie questioned.

"Yeah…"

"Never been better, dudes!" Mikey laughed, more relaxed than he had been in a long time. Leo was glad everything was sorted…now all they had to do was beat their enemy.

That alone would prove to be easier said than done, but they had to try…for the sake of so many people that Shredder would not hesitate to destroy. This included April and Casey, both of whom had reluctantly agreed to stay away from the turtles' lair until things were sorted; however long it may take.

"So then, dudes, what are we gonna do about the Shred-head?" Mikey asked, falling onto the sofa and crushing Donnie's feet in the process, causing him to yelp in pain.

"Well," Raph started, looking round at the three turtles around him, "we could always fake our own deaths…"

"Say what?" Mikey pretended to clean out his ears.

"Think about it; that way Shredder wouldn't come after us. Then we'd have time to form a real plan of action that could stop him once and for all."

"Why don't we make that plan now?" Mikey mumbled.

"Because it's only a matter of time before Shredder finds us anyway! We may as well try this plan; we have nothing to lose. What do you guys think?" he turned to Leo and Donnie as if pleading for some back-up on the matter.

"I think it's a good idea," Donnie whispered.

"Yeah, me too," nodded Leo.

"It is indeed a clever plan, Raphael. It might work but, if it does not, then you will be forced to fight Shredder in a larger battle than any of you could ever imagine." Splinter emerged from the shadows, "but we should give it a try. A warrior's greatest defence lies in his ability to think under extreme pressure. Never forget that, my sons."

"No, master Splinter," chorused all four turtles.

"So, how shall we do it?" Donnie asked after a moment's silence.

"That needs to be discussed in greater detail than we have time to do right now, Donatello. It will have to wait until tomorrow; you have had a very trying day. That is why…"

"Oh no," Mikey whispered to Donnie, who had to stifle laughter, "that means meditation!"

"Not necessarily, Michelangelo. It means that you should go and sleep now. But, as you and Donatello seemed to find something humorous about what I have said, you may take first watch. In two hours you must wake Raphael and Leonardo; we must always be alert." And, with that he disappeared back into the shadows and headed off towards his room. The four turtles looked at each other. Donnie and Mikey were looking hurt and fed-up while Leo and Raph grinned smugly at them.

"See ya in two hours, bro," Raph laughed.

"Yeah, but first we can go and sleep," Leo continued the joke.

"We're gonna throw a bucket of iced water on each of your heads to wake you up!" Mikey retorted while Donatello just laughed.

"Michelangelo! Donatello! Your watch has been extended to four hours! After that, the watches are changed every two hours!" Splinter's voice echoed through the lair.

"See you two in four!" Raph and Leo laughed as they left to sleep, leaving their two brothers fuming in the living room. Leo was exhausted and slept soundly. When it came to switch time, Splinter saw that they were all so tired that he would take the rest of the watches until their wake-up time of 7am. Leonardo, especially, needed the rest.

    The next morning, the turtles began to formulate a plan.

"We should jump off a cliff or something!" Mikey suggested.

"Yeah, that's a great idea!" Raph rolled his eyes sarcastically, "but how the shell are we supposed to save ourselves and not actually die?"

"Ummm…"

"Exactly, we need a plan that means we don't actually get hurt!" Raph snarled, getting agitated with the whole situation.

"What about a van crash? We could get April to crash the news-van and fake our deaths for us. We would be safe then and April and Casey would no longer be at risk because, if we're 'dead', then they can't be accused of hiding our secrets if we're no longer around to tell them our secrets!" Donnie pointed out to them.

"You know what, Don? I think that might just work!" Leo exclaimed, looking to Raph for his agreement.

"Yeah…good work, brainiac," he waved a hand dismissively. Donatello gave a knowing smile to Michelangelo, as they both knew that a compliment from Raph wasn't a regular thing without an insult attached to it at some point!

"We need to carry out the plan today, guys, or we will be putting Casey and April in even more danger. The Foot could attack us or them at any time," Leo looked round the room solemnly, knowing that what they were about to attempt would be dangerous and one of them may even get hurt…or worse.

    They met April and Casey at an organised location, rumoured to be the next striking place of Shredder and the Foot. Sure enough, less than five minutes after they arrived at the large, power station, Shredder and the Foot turned up, creeping through the alleys next to it. The turtles gave one last look at each other.

"This is it," Leo breathed, "good luck everyone…you know what to do!"

    The turtles landed in front of the Foot and a heated battle began. Raphael and Leonardo were fighting back to back, circling round and making sure no-one got past them. If anyone looked like they would get past, Mikey and Donnie would launch a surprise attack on them before springing back into their hiding place. Donnie looked towards the news-van and saw that April, Casey and Splinter were all safely inside. That was their signal. He called down to Leo and Raph.

"Guys, we're getting whipped…let's make a break for it!"

"You got it, Don!" Raph yelled back at him before tapping Leo on the shoulder and following him as he ran in completely the wrong direction (part of the plan) and let Shredder land centimetres from him. He and the others turned and ran towards the van, leaping in as it hurtled past. Donnie and Leo leapt into it first, followed closely by Raph and Mikey. The van began to swerve 'out of control' as the next stage of the plan was put into action.

    The van was heading straight for a building that had been abandoned for many years. The Foot observed the scene with growing interest and almost excitement. Shredder could see the van heading for disaster and decided to help it along the road to ruin. He grabbed a sword from one of the Foot soldiers and threw it with more precision than ever before. It pierced a tyre of the van, sending it careering off in a different direction. It was flung upside down and a large fire erupted from the front engine. April screamed and Casey bundled her out of the side facing away from Shredder and the Foot. Casey and Splinter were close behind April and they could see the fire spreading. They watched in horror, the fire reflecting in their eyes. They began to wonder where the turtles were and why they hadn't emerged from the burning vehicle yet. Just as they began to fear the worst, a voice came from behind them.

"Dudes, we can't just stay here…we need to leave and go into hiding before we're discovered."

"Where can we go?"

"What d'ya mean?" Mikey scoffed, as if it was some sort of game.

"What about my Grandmother's farm-house? We stayed there last time and no-one found us so I'm sure it would work again," Casey suggested brightly.

"Yeah, why not?!" Raph grinned at his brothers, all of whom seemed to like the idea…all except Leo, that is. The last time Leo was there, he had been unconscious and had spent Christmas badly wounded and close to death…not really much Christmas cheer in that!

"Why are you looking so glum, Leo?" Raph lightly punched his brother on the arm as they looked at the decrepit appearance of the farmhouse that stood before them

"Raph…" Leo's voice cracked.

"It's about that Christmas last year, ain't it?" Raph sighed, feeling only a fraction of the pain he knew Leo must be going through. Leo just nodded in answer to him.

"C'mon, Leo, we gotta stay here…we have no other choice. Anyway, you may not have heard me, but I promised back then that I would never let anything like that happen to you ever again."

"I never heard that."

"Nah…you were out cold, bro," Raph managed a shaky laugh.

"I don't think I can do this, Raph…not after last time…it brings back too many memories…"

"You'll be fine; if anyone tries to lay a single finger on you, intending to harm you, then they'll have me to answer to…and I won't be happy!" Raph put an arm round his brother and the walked up to the house.

"Thanks, Raph. I wouldn't be able to do this without you…" Leo shivered with the cold but felt warmer inside than he had in a long time.

"It's ok, bro…just don't get all soppy on me…'k?"

"Yeah, sure Raph," Leo gave him a light punch, "But you gotta promise the same thing!"

"Sure, whatever."

"Guys, are you coming?" Mikey called down to them from the door of the farmhouse. Raph and Leo walked up to the farmhouse, taking in all the details of its appearance.

   That evening, the turtles, Casey and April sat in a circle with Splinter in the middle. He was telling them of their next move. They would need to get hold of a television and Casey would need to be the one to do it as he knew where the old one his Grandmother had owned was. It needed repairing but Donatello agreed to do it. The report would be on first thing in the morning and they would need the T.V. up and running by then.

"Casey," Splinter turned to the man, "you must find the television now. We will need to get it sorted before we sleep tonight so we can all be up bright and early for the report."

"I'll go get it," Casey waved a hand and walked out of the room with Donatello close behind him.

"So, this is the T.V."

"Yeah, I can see that…"

"Can you fix it?"

"I'll have a look," Donnie examined the machine thoroughly and began work on it with Casey watching over his shoulder and offering help where he could.

   Three hours later, they were finished. It was nine o'clock when the re-joined the others in the sitting room. Switching on the telly, they gathered round to check it worked. It worked perfectly and Mikey clapped Donnie on the back, claiming that he wouldn't have lasted without the T.V. Raph and Leo were arguing over what to watch when Splinter sent them to separate rooms.

"Raphael, you will be sharing a room with Casey and Donatello. April is in a room of her own, as am I. Michelangelo will share with Leonardo as I fear you will irritate Raphael and it would be disastrous to make Leonardo and Raphael share!"

"No problem, Master Splinter. I'm gonna go and add some…homely touches to the room. And don't worry; I won't destroy the rooms!"

"Good."

"I feel sorry for Leo!" Casey whispered to Donnie, who snorted with laughter.

"You should feel more sorry for us…we're with Raph!" Donnie replied.

"Nah…I can fight him…"

"And Leo can't?" Donnie raised an eyebrow.

"I never said that! But I don't get sent to my room for fighting him…Raph will get in trouble; not me!" Casey winked.

"Good point."

    "Hey, Leo, I've just come to make this room my own."

"Really?"

"Yeah, that ok with you?"

"Fine…just don't make it too messy or Master Splinter will be onto us and we'll be in so much trouble…and I'm in trouble already!"

"Your own stupid fault; you didn't _have_ to argue with him!"

"I know, but we just argue for no reason and can't stop. It's not like I _want_ to argue with him, but I just can't help it." Leo put his head in his hands and Mikey sat down on the bed next to Leo's so he was facing his brother. He put on his thinking face, sticking his tongue out of the side of his mouth and scratching his head. Leo looked up at his brother in amusement. Mikey didn't mean to be funny; he just was. Leo smiled, despite the situation with Raph. Leo needed to sort things out before the plan moved any further.

**A/N: -**__Thanks for reading…now I'm going to do the pleading author thing and say PLEASE REVIEW! I'm hoping to start up my own home page soon so I'll let you know when I've done it…thanks again. Love ya all; Dory's Human Replica, signing out…phew!


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: -** Ok, here's the next chapter…I'm not going to waffle on like I did at the beginning of the last chapter so just READ, ENJOY AND REVIEW!   

Next morning, Raphael was up before anyone else and headed towards the makeshift dojo that Casey had created especially for them when they had all gone to bed the night before. He began to beat up the punch-bag, which was made out of several pillowcases filled with various foam mattresses shredded up and then the pillowcases were stuffed in a large plastic bin-bag. It made quite a sufficient punch-bag and Raph was more than happy to beat it up. However, when he looked to the clock, he saw the time. It was five to six; the report was on in five minutes. He ran into the room he shared with Casey and Donnie and woke them up roughly. He sent Donnie to wake Master Splinter and Casey to bang on April's door while he went to wake his other two brothers.

"Master Splinter, the report's coming on!"

"April, babe, time to get up and see the report on our deaths!"

"Mikey! Leo! Get up! Report's coming on! You're gonna miss it!"

   The group gathered around the television and switched it to the correct channel.

"Wow, this is so exciting, dudes!" Mikey was jumping up and down in his seat excitedly.

_"Hello, this is Boris McCormick reporting for Channel Six news for the first report on the deaths of our top reporter, April O'Neill, and a local 'crime-fighter', Casey Jones. In a tragic accident, her news van crashed into the back of the Butcher's shop. We are almost certain that neither victim survived. This is Boris McCormick reporting for Channel Six news."_

  "Well, that's it, then." Leo croaked.

"Yeah, no turning back now, huh?" Donnie laid a hand on Leo's shoulder in comfort. Leo shook it off and walked out of the room.

"Dude, should we go after him?"

"No, Michelangelo, you must leave him to be alone. Raphael…you will go after him in ten minutes. But not until then…you two have things you need to sort out with each other."

"Yes, Sensei," Raphael bowed to his Master and went for a walk outside, calculating that it would take ten minutes to _find_ Leonardo, let alone get up the courage to talk to him.

Twenty minutes later, Raph found his brother sat by the lake in the woods with his knees huddled up to his chest. He was staring blankly out over the waters and flinched when Raph spoke.

"You ok? Still afraid of what's gonna happen to us?"

"Not afraid; just in a bit of pain."

"It still hurts, huh? What is it; the pain inside or the pain outside?"

"A bit of both, really. I just feel like I'm in a constant battle to stand up. My legs ache from where I pulled all the muscles in them and I just feel drained; like I should give up or something. I cannot believe that all this has happened. I hate seeing you guys so concerned all the time."

"We're worried about you. Shredder hates you because you were the one who turned down his alliance. We don't wanna lose you."

"But you guys are in just as much danger!"

"Maybe, but we need you…" Donnie had followed Raph along with Mikey.

"Yeah, dude, I mean come on, you're our leader. We need you to come up with plans…last time Raph tried to do it, it all ended in disaster!"

"Aw, shuttit Mikey," Raph growled.

    The reports continued on the 'deaths' of Casey and April for the next five days, and Shredder seemed to be taking advantage. He was now sending out more and more Foot ninjas to rob people and let people know that there was more than just the Purple Dragons lurking in the deserted alleyways and suburbs of New York.

   Tuesday came and the turtles were beginning to pull their lives back together. Raph was helping to train Leo back up to his old self. It took many endless sessions of Leo being beaten by Raph before he finally managed to get back into the swing of things. Leo finally beat Raph; once, twice, three times and many more. When it became apparent that Leo was back to his usual fighting standard, if not better, they all began to take part in sparring sessions together again. Leo was beating them all again in no time; competing in his usual way.

"Nice one, Leo," Donnie groaned.

"Lucky," Raph grunted.

"Not so lucky for my tail; it just got whipped," Mikey joked, "God, I've missed saying that so much!"

"Yeah, well now you can say it every session!"

"Aw, you wish, sword boy! We'll get you next time!" Raph got up and put his Sais away. His brothers also put away their weapons and helped each other up. Splinter walked in,

"I have been told to fetch you; lunch is ready."

"Good, I'm starving! Is it a cheese pizza?"

"No, Michelangelo…it is a pepperoni pizza!"

"Haha, you know what I mean! It seems ages since our last pizza!" Mikey rubbed his stomach as it growled in hunger.

"Come on, guys…another sparring session tomorrow at three?" Leo suggested cheerily, knowing he had a pretty good chance of beating his brothers.

"Whatever," Donnie sighed, going to lunch, followed by his three brothers.

    Lunch consisted of several large pizzas and fries with everyone drinking soft drinks except for Donnie and Leo, who opted for orange juice instead.

"So," Casey began between mouthfuls, "What are you gonna do for the rest of today?"

"Dunno," Raph shrugged, "I guess we could help ya renovate a bit…"

"Raph, do my ears deceive me? You're offering to help?!" Leo blinked in amazement.

"Shuttit bro," Raph glared at Leo and kicked him under the table. A vicious game of kick-fighting began under the table between Leo, Raph, Casey, Donnie and Mikey. Mikey kept moaning because he couldn't get at anyone because they kept moving; Donnie was laughing too much to do serious under-the-table fighting; Casey was threatening to get his hockey stick and hit the arguing turtles over the head with it; Raphael was being very serious and trying to make his kicking of Leo very subtle but it was failing; Leonardo was getting bored and gave up with the fighting and carried on eating, waiting for the kicking at his legs to stop.

    Lunch was over quickly and all four turtles were sent to their rooms, along with Casey as he had taken part in the activity and said he'd rather go to the rooms than face a lecture from Splinter and April!

"So," Casey fiddled with a little gadget belonging to Donatello, "what we gonna do now?"

"Dunno," Raph shrugged, conducting simple exercises to improve the accuracy of his kicks.

 "What are you doing, Mikey?" Leo asked in the next room, looking up from his book he was reading.

"Re-arranging the furniture…making this place look better."

"Well, you're not moving my stuff anywhere but what you do with your own stuff is up to you!" Leo exclaimed, folding his arms and looking disapprovingly at Mikey.

"Hey, just chill will ya, dude?"

"Whatever," Leo shrugged.

"Whatever…you can't move my stuff…blah, blah, blah…" Mikey imitated, dancing round the room and mocking Leo until his irritated, but amused, brother in blue threw a pillow across the room at him, hitting him square in the face. Mikey stopped dancing and flopped onto his bed, staring at his brother in thought.

"Why do you like reading?"

"What?"

"I mean, you read magazines and that's ok…but you read proper books as well! How can you find them interesting; heck, you even read fiction books without pictures!"

"Yeah, but that's because I use my imagination to think of the pictures in my head…you know, using my brain...? Any of this ringing a bell with you, or not?"

"Nope, not really," Mikey rolled onto his back and began studying his fingers.

"You're hopeless," Leo muttered irritably before continuing with his reading and ignoring his orange brother's snores once he fell asleep.

   When everyone met for dinner that night, the atmosphere was tense. Shredder had murdered Casey's friend Angel and also Angel's grandma. If Casey went forward to give evidence against the Shredder then their plan would be ruined. Casey faced a choice: he could go to Angel's funeral and help catch the Shredder, but put the turtles in serious jeopardy. Or he could stay in hiding with his friends and they could keep the plan moving. The turtles were his family now and Splinter was getting more and more like his father while he was treated as the fifth brother by the turtles. April, however, was still the object of Casey's desire. His crush on her was bigger than ever and he longed to impress her and prove he wasn't just the immature ten year old trapped in a man's body, but actually a bright and capable young man. When he tried to explain this to Mikey and Leo they burst out laughing, as did Donnie and Raph. But he was heartened by Splinter who told him that April did, in fact, think very highly of him and he was somewhat a hero in her eyes…in a weird, twisted sort of way.

   Michelangelo slid out of his bed and began to try and creep out of the bedroom without waking his brother. But, when you're Mikey, stuff like that always goes wrong! Sure enough, he was almost out of the door when he tripped over and fell onto Leo's bed. Expecting to hear his brother's angry voice, Mikey cringed. But Leo wasn't there. Confused, Mikey pushed himself up off the bed and crept out of the room.

   He arrived in the living room and found that his brother wasn't there either. Nor was he in the kitchen, the bathroom or the garage. Mikey, temporarily forgetting his original mission to find food slipped out of the front door and walked towards the woods, at one with the shadows. He eventually reached the lake and found Leo throwing stones in it, dejectedly.

"Hey, bro," Mikey broke the silence, causing Leo to physically jump in shock.

"Mikey, what are you doing here?" hissed Leo.

"Looking for you; you weren't in the bedroom or anywhere in the house so I came to find you. I was getting worried…anyway, what are _you_ doing out here at this time? It's one thirty in the morning. Hardly the sort of time to go for a walk by the lake!"

"I needed to think…"

"You can do that during the day…we have nothing else to do. So, why do it now, Leo?"

"Because…"

"That's not a reason," Mikey waggled a finger jokingly at his brother. But Leo obviously wasn't in a joking mood.

"I don't have to give a reason, ok?! Why does everyone always have to know where I am all the time? Why can't I get some time on my own?"

"I just wanna talk to ya!" Mikey pleaded.

"Well, I don't wanna talk!" Leo retorted and cannonball dived into the lake.

"Ok, be that way…but I'm just gonna keep following you until you give me a proper reason," Mikey sighed, jumping into the water and swimming after his brother, who had reached the centre of the lake.

"Why won't you just leave me alone?" Leo asked, getting stressed by now.

"Ok, here are three reasons for you: One – I'm your brother and I like to know what's going on in the family. Two – You're the 'fearless leader' so if you're afraid I wanna know so I know what's so frightening. And three – I hate seeing you, Raph and Donnie so depressed." Mikey's voice was just a whisper.

"You're just as bad," Leo stated bluntly.

"Am not…I only get like it because you lot are all like it."

"Whatever," Leo shrugged, swimming further away from his brother.

"It's not 'whatever', Leo. This is serious…wow, I never thought I'd hear myself say that!"

"Neither did I," Leo muttered under his breath.

"What…?"

"I said: Neither did I!"

"Ok, you're going down, Leo!" Mikey laughed as he lunged at his brother, ducking him underwater. The two fought in the water for a while but then something went wrong. The weed at the bottom of the pond latched onto their legs and dragged them under. Reaching desperately for his younger brother's hand, Leo tried to stay calm, as always. Mikey found Leo's hand and they held onto each other tightly, trying in vain to stay above the surface. But it was no use; the weed had wound itself round them when they were fighting _under_ the water. This meant that they were in trouble. If they were kept underwater to long then they'd drown…they couldn't hold their breath forever. And even if they could, how would anyone ever find them? All they could do was wait…

**A/N: -**   This was a really risky chapter to write…and I mean _really_ risky! I wasn't sure whether Turtles could breathe underwater or not…but they can't! They can just hold their breath for a long time! Heh heh…I'm very glad about that! Next chapter up as soon as is possible!


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: -** So, here you go…the next, hopefully great, chapter of my story. Have fun reading it and I hope to update with the next chapter as soon as I can. There will be no Author's note at the end of this chapter because I want to 'finish in a suspenseful fashion and leave you wanting more.' I hope you like reading this chapter and I swear that there is a massive series of fights within the next four or five chapters.

As their breath began to run out, Mikey and Leo clung to each other tighter. They had made several attempts to escape the clutches of the weed but all attempts had failed. Then, as they started to lose consciousness, Leo freed one of his feet and soon afterwards he freed the other one. He quickly swam to his brother and untangled him but Mikey was out cold. His breath had run out because he'd panicked at the beginning of their ordeal and had used his oxygen.

   Leo dragged his limp brother out onto the riverbank and led him down. He felt Mikey's throat for a pulse but could find none; his brother wasn't breathing. He put both hands on Mikey's chest and pushed down as hard as he could. After three pushes, Mikey coughed and spluttered as he rid his lungs of the lake water. Leo flopped onto the grass in relief and both turtles caught their breath before slowly walking back to the house.

    Heaving themselves up the stairs to the front door was difficult. Both of them were exhausted and wanted nothing more than to drop into bed.

    Upon reaching their bedroom, they pulled back their bedcovers and simultaneously dropped into their own beds, not caring in the slightest that they were still a bit wet.

"You still haven't told me what's wrong," Mikey whispered, pulling his duvet tighter around him.

"Nothing's wrong," Leo whispered back, also hugging the duvet to him.

"Yeah, right…am I really supposed to believe that, dude?"

"It was worth a try. Ok, if you really want to know ----"

"My sons, kindly explain what you are doing up at this hour?"

"Master Splinter?" Mikey and Leo moaned.

"You should not have been down by the lake at all,"

"We were just ---- wait, how did you know we were down by the lake?"

"I could sense your panic, Michelangelo…and your discomfort, Leonardo."

"But Master Splinter, Mikey was looking for me because he realised I wasn't here."

"And why weren't you here?"

"I couldn't sleep."

"We will talk about this in the morning. Michelangelo, I know you were concerned for your brother but you must always wake me first if there is a problem. And as for you, Leonardo, it is about time you did your brothers the honour of telling them what's wrong with you so that we can all get on with trying to beat the Shredder, understood?"

"Yes, sensei," Leo replied meekly, not daring to try and explain that he couldn't share his worries with his brothers for fear that they would think him stupid for worrying over a memory that everyone else had managed to overcome. Why couldn't he just forget last year's Christmas like everyone else seemed to have done? What was his problem? Was he just weak, or was it something more than that? Maybe he just couldn't let go of the pain he had gone through. And the thought of Raph crying more than disturbed him! That was just wrong! He definitely needed to relax more and he should probably stop being so bossy but, hey, he wasn't a super-turtle…the bossiness would have to wait until another time!

"Hey, Donnie. Breakfast?" Mikey asked his brother.

"Yeah, thanks Mike."

"Scrambled eggs?"

"Oh, don't start the egg phase again!"

"Why not? I'm good at cooking eggs…only scrambled ones, though." Mikey laughed.

"Well, why not, I can't see the harm in it!"

"Apart from maybe some food poisoning," Raph added smugly as he entered the room, stretching.

"Hey, I'm a better cook than Leo!"

"Yeah, if he was cooking I would've been in the loo for a week!"

"Someone insulting my cooking?" Leo stood in the doorway, hands on hips and eyebrows raised.

"Yeah…" Raph laughed.

"Hey, at least I don't wear a pink apron with frills!"

"Hey, leave me alone…at least I can cook," Mikey laughed in comeback to his older brother, who pretended to be offended.

"Sorry, Mikey, but I'm not that bad at cooking! I can follow a recipe but I just can't cook on my own…I usually skip stages in the recipes but oh well!"

    After breakfast, the four turtles went for a training session in the dojo and Leo and Raph were soon into a one-to-one over who used the punch bag first. They were rolling around on the floor of the dojo in a serious wrestling match.

"I'm using it first!"

"Me,"

"ME!"

"ME!!!"

"ME!!!!!!!!" Raph threw Leo off before being caught off guard as his brother swiftly regained his footing and threw himself back onto Raph.

"Mine!"

"MINE!"

"MINE!!"

"MINE!!!!"

"Actually, we're gonna use it first as you two cannot seem to decide," Donnie stated as he and Mikey punched the bag to each other. Raph and Leo stopped in mid-fight and looked at each other in annoyance before teaming up and chasing after Donnie and Mike. The four turtles hurtled through the farmhouse and its grounds, playing a huge game of 'tag'. They were acting like five year olds again. It was incredible to watch.

    The four turtles finally stopped playing and stretched out in the sun to relax. Their worries all seemed to disappear under the sun's 'healing' rays. They were feeling drowsy and dozed off one after the other to restore their energy levels; it was all perfect.

"RAAAAH!" Casey leapt onto Raph and they began to wrestle. The other turtles squinted in the bright sunlight and laughed as Raph and Casey began sending barrages of insults at each other.

"Ape-breath!"

"Bozo!"

"Crap sniffer!"

"Dog fer!"

"Elephant snogger!"

"Fat Freako!"

"Gay Gargoyle!"

"Horrible Hamster Head!"

"Illiterate geek!"

"Joking Jackass!"

"Killer hockey dude!"

"Lizard lips!"

"Monkey arms!"

"Nutter!"

"Ogre!"

"Pompous prat!"

"No, that's Leo – anyway – Queasy Quack!"

"Rancid Ragamuffin!"

"St sniffing Shredder sucker!"

"Troublemaking Twat!"

"Underdog!"

"Vile Vomit!"

"Wobbly ass!"

"Xanthic pisshead!"

"Yob!"

"Zithead!"

"Ok, that's the alphabet done…can you get off me now?"

"Yeah, sure," Casey clambered off his turtle friend, satisfied with the Verbal Bashing match.

"Do you actually know what Xanthic means?" Raph inquired.

"Yeah, it means yellowish – April taught it to me especially for this type of thing!" Casey laughed, ignoring Raph's promises to kill April.

"Evil, huh?" Leo punched Raph's shoulder, "And I don't appreciate being called a pompous prat!"

"Sorry, Leo but it can be true sometimes."

"Only when you provoke me and refuse to listen to me!"

"Sorry about that, Leo, but don't go falling off any more platforms because of it now, will you?"

"Casey!" Raph hissed at his friend.

"Oh no…I'm sorry, it just didn't come out right…I didn't mean to say it!"

"It's ok, Casey. I just need to go to the bathroom…" Leo looked extremely pale and walked off quicker than usual. Donnie got up and went after him, knowing that Leo would need someone there for him.

"Leo?" Donnie poked his head round the bathroom door. Leo was sat with his back against the wall and seemed to be doing a reasonably good job of fighting off the nausea he was suffering.

"I'm ok, Don, don't worry about me."

"You're not fooling anyone, Leo. Casey said he's really sorry…were you ?"

"No, thankfully, but I just don't get it. Why can't I just put the past behind me? I can still remember stuff that happened years ago that was bad and I can't let go of it!"

"You've always been like it…but then Raph's always been a bad-tempered asshole and Mikey's always been a prankster and I've always been…well, a brainiac." Donnie sat next to his brother and they both stared at the wall with blank looks on their faces. The one thing that let Leo open up more to Donnie was that he would never make jokes or tease him for being stupid. Donnie understood that being a leader wasn't always easy and also that just because Leo was the oldest it didn't mean he was any less vulnerable.

"Donnie, when are we going to go back to New York?"

"When Splinter says so, I guess. What do you think about it?"

"I think we should go back soon, before the Shred-head destroys the city and any more of the people Casey and April are close to."

"Yeah, Casey's really bummed out 'cause he can't go to Angel's funeral," Donnie sighed as he stood up again, offering a hand to Leo who took it gratefully and allowed himself to be pulled to his feet.

"I kinda feel sorry for him," Leo shrugged once he and Donnie were in the living room.

"Kinda?" Donnie turned to his older brother and eyed him quizzically.

"Yeah…he's still a bit irritating and he is, as I'm sure you'll agree, he is a complete and utter jackass!" Leo laughed.

"Jackass?" Casey was right behind them, "I was gonna apologise for what I said, Leo, but now I'm not so sure!" he sniffed in mock hurt but winked to show it was a joke; you could never tell with Casey, "Anyway, I want you guys to see what I found in your lair a long time ago…" Casey walked over to the VCR and put a tape into it. Mikey and Raph joined them and the five of them settled down to watch the video.

_"Donnie, is it working?" Raph's head could be seen in the shot._

_"I dunno…is the little red light on?" Donnie queried._

_"Yeah, yeah, yeah!__ Look at me, Don! Get this on tape!" Mikey was doing a headstand._

_"Hang on, Mikey…" The shot went in and out of focus as Donnie fiddled with the focus wheel._

_"No, Don…you said you'd record me first!" Raph whined._

_"Raph…"_

_"Donnie! I'm the oldest so I should go first! Please!" Leo joined in._

_"Ok, Leo…seeing as you're the only one being sensible about this!"___

_"Hey! Don, I gave you the rest of that pizza!" Raph growled._

_"You didn't give it to me…you threw it in my face because I corrected you!"_

_"No I didn't…I know how you can film me, Leo and Mikey all at once!"_

_"How?"___

_"Mikey can sit and bawl his eyes out, and I can punch Leo's head in!"_

_"I don't cry!" Mikey could be seen with his bottom lip trembling in the back of the shot._

_"Yeah, you do…or at least you will when I rip your panda to shreds!" Raph held a panda up and began abusing it._

_"NOOOOO!!"__ Mikey burst into tears. Leo ran over to Raph and snatched the panda, handing it back to Mikey._

_"That was uncalled for, Raph."_

_"You starting on me, Leo?" Raph squared up to his brother._

_"No, but I'm just saying that you shouldn't take Mikey's panda."_

_"I'll kill yours instead then!" Raph cackled insanely._

_"NO, RAPH, GIVE HIM BACK!"_

_"Haha!__ Come and get it! Don, I hope you're filming this!" Raph ran past and the camera followed him. Leo caught up with his brother and grabbed his panda and threw it to Donnie for safe keeping and he and Raph began fighting. Leo pinned Raph to the ground and Raph lashed out and caught Leo just above his knee, causing him to buckle._

_"Ow! Raph that really hurt."_

_"Yeah, well so what?" Raph stormed off and a door could be heard slamming in the background._

_"Leo, are you ok?" Mikey asked crawling over to his older brother timidly._

_"Yeah,"_

_"That's gonna leave a bad bruise!" the camera shot moved as Donnie walked over to his brothers._

_"Yeah, Donnie can you stop filming now?"_

_"Yeah sure------!"___

   "Look familiar?" Casey glanced round at his four turtle friends.

"Yeah, those were the…ummm…good days," Raph snorted.

"We look so funny!" Mikey laughed.

"We were only six, Mikey," Donnie rolled his eyes, "and anyway, you looked the silliest!"

"Whatever," Mikey stretched out on the sofa and put his hands behind his head. Leo wrinkled his nose when Mikey put his feet on Leo's lap and pushed his younger brother's cheesy feet off of him.

"I don't want those stinky things anywhere near me!"

"Hey, just 'because your feet don't smell it doesn't mean you can make fun of me…I like my feet smell!"

"You would!"

"Quit bickering with Leo, Mikey," Raph walked over and whacked his brother in orange round the head.

"What?"

"That's my job!" Raph laughed and sat on his younger brother's legs, making him squeal in pain.

"Yeah, my quarrels with Raph are definitely more frequent than the quarrels with you, Mike!"

"Yeah, and I don't argue with anyone!" Donnie laughed.

"Whatever, Don," Leo shrugged and got up from his seat and walked over to the kitchen to get a drink. He emerged a moment later with five cans of lemonade and threw one to each person in the room before sitting down again and starting to drink.

"Hey, Raph, eat bubbles!" Mikey shook up his can of drink and opened it in Raph's face so it exploded all over his older brother.

"Mikey?" Raph snarled.

"Uh-oh!" Mikey got up.

"Run, Mike," Donnie hissed at him and Mikey was off like a shot down the hallway. Raph let out an ominous growl and started after his brother.

"Mikey will need to run pretty damn fast," Leo stated, looking disapprovingly after his two brothers. Donnie nodded and bit his lip in mock worry for Mikey when really he hoped Raph actually caught his younger brother.

"Nah, he won't be able to run fast enough. Rah will catch 'im before he gets to the end of the hall!"

    Sure enough, a series of high pitched screams at the end of hall indicated that Mikey had, indeed, been caught and when they poked their heads round the door they saw Raph attacking Mikey, who was on his front on the floor, and twisting his arm behind his back. Mikey was screaming and whining as his brother continued to attack him.

"Leo, Donnie, Casey, help me! Report Raph to Sensei!"

"Actually, I think I'm gonna pretend I didn't see this!" Leo turned and walked in the opposite direction with Donnie and Casey close behind him and whistling innocently.

"YOU TRAITORS!" Mikey screeched after them.

    That night when they were at dinner, Mikey was glaring daggers at his brothers and making a particular point of ignoring them by talking twice as much to Splinter and April. They were trying to scavenge what they could because none of them were in the position to just walk into town and go shopping! So their dinner was bread and butter (which was slightly too hard for comfort) and some chocolate cookies. They used the last of the fizzy drinks and the food was running out fast.

"We need to put the next part of the plan into action," Leo pointed out, voicing what everyone else was thinking.

"You got an idea, bro?" Raph asked, looking up at Leo.

"Maybe…it's risky…"

"Everything is risky these days, my sons." Splinter stood up, "Leonardo, please come with me. I wish to know of this plan before your brothers raise their hopes too high."

"Yes, Sensei,"

Leo followed his master out of the room and they went into Splinter's room, where Splinter lit several candles and motioned for Leonardo to sit down.

"Tell me of your idea, Leonardo," Splinter lowered his head and closed his eyes, a sure sign he was listening.

"Well, maybe we could catch Shredder out; he hasn't always got his Foot soldiers with him. We may have to take out Hun first but sneaking up on the Shredder shouldn't be a problem. He fell for the crash and he could fall for this."

"I think that is an absolutely…excellent idea," Splinter opened his eyes and smiled, "there is no other way to do it and it's certainly a better plan than I had got planned."

"What was your plan, Master Splinter?"

"To wait until they found us but that is even more risky because they would have full force with them then."

"Then let's go…tonight."

"That was exactly what I was going to suggest. Fetch your brothers and Casey. April will stay here to gather medical supplies and keep watch. Go, now!"

"Yes, Sensei," Leo bowed and left the room, leaving Splinter to some final meditation.

"Guys, tonight is the night - if we are to defeat Shredder and save New York, we must do it tonight. April, you will stay here. Casey will accompany us and----"

"Kick Shredder's ass!" Casey punched the air and there was an awkward silence. April hugged each of them in turn, taking longer over Casey than everything else, and wished them good luck. Finally, Splinter emerged from his room and they all knew the time had come.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: -**    I'm really sorry this chapter isn't going to be as long as the other chapters but it's essential for the story and the next chapter will be longer and things will get more mysterious…and far more dangerous for our heroes!

   They arrived at the Foot HQ and, sure enough, the Foot were out wreaking havoc all across New York. Hun was there with Shredder but the Turtles were quietly confident about beating them; even Mikey, the hysterical screamer of the group, was almost certain that they would successfully rid New York, and the rest of the world, of the Shredder.

"Ok, guys, we just have to wait for the signal," Leo whispered to his brothers and Casey. Splinter had disappeared and was on a high platform over on the other side of the room so that he could only emerge if there was a real problem. Splinter's signal was a spin of his staff. It finally came and the Turtles moved to their separate starting positions.

"So, Shredder, you thought you could kill us?" Leo growled, dropping down behind Shredder.

"You're gonna pay for all the trouble you've caused us," Donnie added, dropping down to the left of Shredder, who was looking at the turtles in front of him with Hun by his side.

"And let me tell you, Shred-head, the minute you dare lay a finger on my brothers is the minute you die." Raph snarled, joining his two brothers who were already in front of Shredder.

"And because I can't think of a clever fight line, I'm gonna go with screaming and running round like a headless turtle in the hope you'll show me mercy!" Mikey laughed nervously.

"You fools," Shredder rasped, "did you really think your little plan to fake your own deaths would fool me?"

"Ummm…yeah, we did actually," Mikey cowered.

"As we speak, the Foot are on their way to the Farmhouse to dispose of a certain Miss O'Neill who has been alerting you to the crimes of the Foot. And now, you will die a painful and slow death,"

"I don't think so, Shredder. We are gonna kick your filthy ass into oblivion!" Casey leapt down from where he'd been hiding and the fight began.

    Hun automatically launched himself at Casey and Raph, the two who frequently escaped from him and foiled his plans in their many encounters with his Purple Dragons, who were probably not even aware that their leader was in a battle for his life. Shredder went for the other three turtles that had surrounded him so that at least one of them would get a decent shot at him, even if Shredder performed a split kick to throw of two of them. This was the case; Leo and Donnie were thrown off and Mikey was left in a fierce battle with Shredder and Shredder hadn't yet started using his katana!

   Splinter observed the scene with more and more creases appearing on his face; he had a difficult decision to make. He could either stay here and keep an eye on his sons or he could go and rescue April. However, Casey made the decision for him.

"Splinter, go and rescue April!"

     Splinter nodded and was off faster then a speeding bullet and, considering he was an old rat, that was pretty impressive. He knew he had only a short amount of time to reach the Farmhouse before the Foot ninjas did. If they got to April O'Neill first then the consequences would be disastrous, and irreversible; you can't exactly bring someone back from the dead, can you? He reached the Farmhouse in record time and ran through the forest. He reached the edge and looked through the trees at the house; the Foot clan were already inside it…Splinter was too late. He backed off and turned round, sighing with mixed grief and regret. The Farmhouse was burning and April would be dead. Suddenly, he saw a figure moving amongst the trees. He ran towards it, launching himself into the air and landing right in front of it. It screamed…_wait a minute; Foot ninjas don't scream like that…_

"Miss O'Neill?" he asked, peering into the darkness.

"Master Splinter?" April peeked round the tree behind which she'd leapt to hide, thinking Splinter was an enemy.

"What, in the name of Bushido, are you doing here?"

"I knew they would come to find me so I had to get out. Where are Raph and the others?"

"Fighting Shredder, and now I must get back to them. You must come with me to the battle shell which is positioned not far from the Foot HQ and then you will stay in hiding there until I get back with my sons. Not all of us may return so you must prepare yourself for the worst. Have you a message for young Mr. Casey Jones?"

"Tell him that…I wish him luck and that, if he fights honourably and survives, maybe I'll think about going on a date with him and giving a relationship a try."

"I shall pass on the message to him…now come. I fear my sons will need some help in defeating Shredder." Splinter whispered, leading April off into the forest so they could exit the other side and go towards the Foot HQ without risk of being seen and captured. They had to move, and move quickly…

  Meanwhile, Donnie and Leo were back on their feet and were once again battling the Shredder and giving him everything they had. Mikey had been knocked out when Shredder had caught him with a right hook punch by surprise and Raph and Casey were having several problems dealing with the furious Hun as he swung his massive iron hard fists at them, repeatedly attempting to knock them out. Leo and Donnie were making alternate attacks on their tough opponent but both of them already had many bruises and cuts and, though he didn't like to admit it, Leo was suffering since Shredder had kicked one of his not quite healed up wounds (on his left leg) from the warehouse. Now, he had a slight limp which slowed his kicks slightly, but Leo didn't want to admit it in case his brothers thought him weak (although he knew they wouldn't – it was just an excuse for him to ignore the pain which was now gnawing at him.).

"Donnie, Mikey, Raph! Turtle formation, now! Casey, keep fighting Hun!" Leo barked out his orders to the others and his three brothers and Casey nodded in agreement, knowing that they had to try every move known to them and hope to find one that would catch Shredder off-guard and give them the chance to finish him once and for all. Donnie, Mikey and Raph were soon in the starting position for the Turtle formation _(A manoeuvre involving Raph springing at the opponent(s) from behind and Donnie jumping and landing slightly to the right of the opponent(s). Then Mikey would trip the opponent(s) with his Nunchuks and Leo would aim a kick at the chest of the opponent(s) before finishing them with a swipe of his Katana.)_ And now the four of them waited only for Leo's command.

"Leo, when you're ready!" Raph yelled at his brother as he blocked an attack from Shredder with his Sais.

"Ok, guys, NOW!"

    The plan was put into action and everything was going perfectly until Casey was thrown into the middle of them just as Leo was about to finish Shredder with a swipe from his left Katana. And, so you all know, if Leo had swiped with his Katana then he would've decapitated Casey as well as Shredder, and Raph would never have forgiven him for that. Shredder recovered from the shock of the Turtle formation, got to his feet and lifted Casey in front of him like a shield, holding a blade to his exposed throat.

"All of you stand in front of me or Jones gets it." Shredder's raspy voice ordered. All eyes were on Leo. Raph's look was pleading.

"Guys, stand in front of Mr. Metalhead here." Leo said, his voice staying calm and level. The Turtles did as they were told and Shredder's insane laugh soon filled the room.

"You fools; did you really think I would spare him if you just stood in front of me. I just wanted you to get a better view of him dying! You would do well not to listen to your 'fearless' leader all the time in battle."

"Donnie," Leo whispered through gritted teeth to the brother in purple stood next to him, "We do the Metalhead special…you know, the one we practised for an emergency such as this?"

"Yeah," Donnie agreed and whispered to Raph," Raph, tell Mikey, it's one Metalhead special…you know the code word for the start of this operation!"

"Sure, brainiac…Mikey, it's Metalhead special time."

"Cool!" Mikey said, eyes widening in excitement.

"You can't kill him, Shredder," Leo stated calmly, a flash of malice glimmering in his eyes as he stared, unblinking, at the Shredder. Casey twigged on instantly to what was going on…Leo was going to risk the Metalhead special…they'd only ever practised it once and that was several months ago as a joke battle in the dojo of the Turtle's sewer lair! This was possibly the most dangerous and risky thing they had ever come up with to use in a battle.

"And why not, mutant freak?"

"Because of PIZZA!!!!" Leo shouted the code word at the top of his voice to make it as clear as possible, and the Metalhead special was about to get its first, and, if things went to plan, its last try-out…

**A/N: -**   There you have it! My sixth chapter of 'TBBOTML'. I really hope you enjoyed it and are making your way to the 'submit review' box right about now! See you next time – I'll update as soon as I can!


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: -** This chapter is a lot longer than the last one – I hope you like this one and I will take this chance to say that I do not own the TMNT even though I really wish I did!

"What do you mean 'because of pizza'? Argh, you're even more foolish than I thought you'd be!" Shredder growled, moving towards them with an evil gleam in his eyes.

"Mikey, you know what to do!"

"Which one of you goons is Mikey?" Shredder asked, snarling and looking round the group at each turtle in turn…but only three of them were in front of him, "I'll ask you once more; which one of you goons is Mikey?"

"I AM!" Mikey yelled, launching himself at Shredder and kicking his head. Shredder went flying forward and into the wall. Leo was up next and he snuck off to get ready for his part in the Metalhead Special.

"You're going to pay!" Shredder hissed venomously, standing up and clenching his fists.

"Oh really…maybe, but not before you do!" Leo yelled, knocking off Shredder's helmet and jumping to safety.

"Donnie, you brainiac, it's our turn!" Raph called out to his brother in purple.

"Yeah, Raph, let's go for it!" Donnie punched the air and he and Raph leapt up and met in the middle, banging into Shredder from either side and knocking him out cold. Just as they were about to finish him off, Casey was lifted into the air by Hun and thrown at them so he knocked the two turtles either side of Shredder off their feet. Hun rushed to Shredder and lifted him over his shoulder and also grabbed Casey while he was at it and dragging him along. He threw himself out of the window and off into the night.

"CASEY!" Raph cried out, lodging his Sais into the wall next to the window.

"Raph, come on…we have to catch up with Leo and Mikey!" Donnie pulled his brother to his feet and they chased after their two brothers, who were already hot on the trail of Hun, Shredder and Casey.

    Mikey and Leo were sneaking after Hun, and sticking closely to the shadows. They followed them to the Purple Dragons' Headquarters.

"What are we gonna do once we break into that joint?" Mikey asked his brother in a quiet whisper.

"Get Casey and get out…we can't do anything else at the moment."

"Ok, I got it," Mikey nodded and the two brothers walked slowly towards the guards at the doors of the HQ. They stayed in the shadows so that only their hands could be seen and gave the three-fingered salute. They were, thankfully, allowed in without hesitation from the guards. They instantly spotted Hun and, still keeping to the shadows, they followed Hun to a bedroom, where Shredder was laid out on the bed, and then to the jail where Casey was roughly thrown into a cell and remained how he landed, sprawled out, unconscious. The two turtles waited for Hun to leave before attempting to get Casey out. Mikey managed to smash one of the bars of the cells with his Nuunchuks and he and Leo rushed in.

"Casey, can you hear me?"

"L…Leo?" Casey stirred and opened his eyes, staring up at Leo, his eyes unfocussed.

"Yeah, Casey, it's me. You're gonna be ok, Casey."

"Raph will kill us if we don't get ya outta here, dude! He's gonna kill us anyway 'cause we left him and Donnie behind!" Mikey waffled on.

"Mikey…?"

"Well, duh," scoffed Mikey. They lifted Casey to his feet and supported him between them as Raph and Donnie burst into the jail.

"Casey! Are you ok?" Raph ran to his friend's side and knocked Mikey out of the way to take his place in supporting Casey. Leo frowned and Donnie bit his lip, worried by the state of Casey.

"Raph…we gotta…kick…Hun's…butt," Casey managed before he lost consciousness again.

"Correction; _I'm_ gonna kick Hun's butt on your behalf. We gotta get you outta here, Case, before they kill you."

"Raph, we need to leave, now." Leo's voice was urgent and the group left through the ventilation shafts.

   Outside, the Battle Shell was hidden in the shadow of the Purple Dragons' HQ building. April and Splinter had followed the turtles and were waiting outside for any sign of trouble.

"Splinter, look!" April cried. The four turtles and Casey were heading towards them and it was impossible to see who was who in the darkness. When they got closer, it became apparent that Casey's feet were being dragged along the ground while Leo and Raph supported him on either side. April hurriedly got out of the truck and ran to Casey, tears welling up in her eyes.

"My sons," Splinter's raspy voice sounded beside them as he joined them, "what happened? Are you all safe and well for the moment?"

"As safe as can be expected, Sensei," Leo answered, bowing as best he could while supporting the unconscious Casey.

"That is good, and now we must find somewhere to rest and recover before we even attempt to go anywhere near Shredder again."

"What…about…Angel's house?" Casey seemed to be awake again and was trying to stand up without the support of Raph and Leo. Needless to say, he failed dismally and fell forward. Only this time he fell into April's waiting arms. She hugged him tightly and he managed a shaky grin and a wink at Raph as he weakly returned the hug.

   At Angel's house the group settled down to recover. The house was wrecked and everything had been overturned. April just hoped that they'd be able to tidy it and get the blood-stains out of some of the furniture before Casey was awake enough to take in the circumstances of the murders of his friends. No-body had gone near the house, not even the police, because they were too busy dealing with the boom in crimes…robberies and murders; disappearances and drug dealings.

"I'm going to go and fix up Casey…he looked pretty bad," Donnie yawned, fatigue taking over his entire being.

"Ok, Don," Leo gave a shuddering yawn and stretched as he stood up, "I think I'm going to go to bed…is that ok with everyone?"

"Yeah, sure," Mikey shrugged, "you're looking a bit peaky anyway, bro. Are you sure you're ok?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Who's sharing a room with whom?"

"I dunno…Sensei?" Raph turned to Splinter, who had just walked into the room after having gone to explore the house, willing him to make the decision.

"Raphael, you will share with Leonardo and the both of you will sleep in the same room as Mr. Jones. Michelangelo, you and Donatello will share with me. Miss O'Neill, you shall sleep in the library area; it has a fold-out bed which I think you will find sufficient." Splinter then beckoned for Mikey and Donnie to follow him and they did so without complaint. Leo waited for Raph to get up and the two of them made their way to the room with Casey in it on the third floor. They were the only ones on the top floor so that they would have fair warning if they were attacked and could protect Casey.

    They were on their way up the two flights of stairs to their room, each lost in their individual thoughts, when Leo slipped. Raph snapped back to reality and grabbed his brother, pushing him to make him walk up the rest of the stairs. He was exhausted and his legs couldn't take much more. Upon reaching the top of the stairs, Leo's legs completely gave out and he fell to the floor, gasping as if he was having a fit. He was trembling and his body was convulsing. Raph knelt beside him and shook him. He hated having to see Leo's expression of extreme pain.

"Leo, c'mon bro, you can't do this to me," Raph hauled his brother in blue up into a sitting position and tried to snap him out of whatever it was that had taken hold of him. Suddenly, Leo spoke, his voice strained and the effort it took to speak obviously paining him.

"Shredder…knives…gonna kill…Christmas…burning…not gonna…take me…ARGH!" Leo's body relaxed and he started sobbing heavily, a disturbing sight. Raph shifted uncomfortably and cast his eyes down to the floor, feeling awkward. But Leo's words had ripped right though him and sent a cold shiver down his spine. He then realised he was just sitting and doing nothing while his brother was trying to make sense of some sort of fit. He pulled Leo to him and wrapped him in a comforting hug, feeling Leo's body racking with sobs as he tried to get over what had just happened.

"Come on, Leo. You've gotta snap out of it and tell me what happened or I can't help you to deal with it."

"The Shredder tried to attack my mind."

"What?!"

"He wanted me to tell him the names of you, Mike and Don and also to tell him where we're hiding and how to get in without being discovered."

"You didn't tell him anything, did you?" Raph pulled away from his brother and looked him in the eye, "did you?"

"I'm so sorry Raph…"

"Leo, what did you tell him?!"

_Raphael…_

"I'm sorry, Raph…" Leo's voice was cracking but he'd stopped shaking, "he was gonna kill me…"

_Raphael…you've killed Casey…_

"Raph…?"

"He's in my head…he's talking to me," Raph stood up, leaving Leo sat on the ground, "you told him my name!"

"He found it in my sub-conscious. I must've been calling you in my sub-conscious or something."

"You gave in to the Shredder!"

"What? No, I didn't!"

"Damn you, Leo…you thought you'd get revenge for all our fights!" Raph was grinding his teeth in pure frustration.

"You don't understand, Raph!"

_Raphael, where are you hiding…I could kill any one of your brothers._

_No, you couldn't._

_Not physically – but mentally I could destroy them_

_You don't even know their names!_

_I know you, Leonardo, Mr. Jones, April O'Neill and Splinter._

_You shall not hurt them!_

_THEN I SHALL HURT YOU!_

_NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!_

"Raph…? Are you ok?"

"What – oh, yeah. He wants to kill us, Leo."

"I know, Raph. But let's get some sleep and figure this out tomorrow."

"How can we sleep? He could drain information from us in out dreams and we'll put everyone at risk."

"We'll take turns; I'll take first watch. If you start talking in your sleep or show any signs of a possible mental attack from Shredder then I'll wake you."

"Ok, but we shall have shifts no longer than two hours at a time, ok?"

"Yeah…let's go," Leo swallowed and they walked to their room together to take turns at resting, with Leo on first watch.

   Raph was sleeping soundly for the first forty-five minutes but then he began to toss and turn in his sleep. Leo jumped to attention from where he had been polishing his Katana. He walked cautiously over to his brother and shook him awake. Raph blinked up at his brother and Leo explained the situation to him and then allowed him to go back to sleep. Casey was also stirring but did not wake.

  Two hours later, Raph took over from his brother, who was practically asleep anyway. The rest of the watches passed without a problem and eventually they let down the watches at about six o'clock and both slept for a couple of hours…until Mikey and Donnie started crashing around downstairs. They were playing tag and Donnie seemed to be it. Raph and Leo groaned, opened their eyes and looked at each other across the room in despair. Mikey was now thundering up the stairs.

"No, Mikey, not up there! Raph and Leo-----" Donnie never finished as Mikey burst into the room to see a furious Raph and an irritated Leo. He laughed nervously and began to back out of the room, muttering incoherently as he went. Donnie had waited at the bottom of the stairs to listen to what was going on. He saw Mikey appear at the top of the stairs and begin to run down them. He rushed past Donnie and Donnie listened out for his two brothers but it seemed they had ignored Mikey disturbing them but they were talking in quiet whispers to each other. Donnie crawled up the stairs to listen and what he heard made him want to cry out.

"What do we do now, Leo? We can't tell Don and Mikey...they could react badly."

"We'll have to talk to Master Splinter; he'll know what to do and we should be able to get rid of Shredder."

"I just don't get it…"

"I'm sorry I dragged you into this, Raph,"

"Nah, it ain't your fault. Hun would've told Shredder my name anyway…he's probably heard it enough times when you and me have been talking or when Casey's yelled at me during a Purple Dragons battle."

"I think we need to take on Shredder again…and soon. Before he gets any more information."

"But he's not gonna get any more from us two, is he?"

"No, but he also knows Casey and April. He could just as easily attack them and they wouldn't be able to resist as easily because they would just think it was a dream." Leo pointed out to his brother, who was fiddling absent-mindedly with his Sais. Donnie crept back down the stairs again, knowing that his older brothers would just worry if they knew he knew.

  "You guys ok? I thought you were supposed to be in here looking after me!"

"Casey? What – you – but – you're awake?" Raph was gob-smacked.

"You didn't think a little fight with Hun would stop me from missing all the fun. You'll never guess what I dreamt about!"

"What?" Leo asked warily.

"I was talking to this cloaked guy and he asked me where I was staying. We laughed and joked and I told him where we were staying. He said he sympathised. Then he asked me if I was staying with you guys. I said yes and he asked what the 'purple and orange ones' were called. I told him and then I woke up."

"You told him their names?"

"Yeah, what's wrong with------?"

"NOOOO! HELP…MIKEY, HELP ME!"

"Donnie? Donnie!" Mikey grabbed his brother's hand and called for his two eldest brothers.

"Mikey, what is it?" Leo rushed into the room and held Donnie's other hand and led a hand on his younger brother's forehead, talking to him, "come on, Don. He's in your imagination. You can throw him out…all you have to do is try."

"Leo…Shredder…attacks…three days…army…" Don trailed off, his eyes wide and unseeing as he froze.

"Donnie? Don't do this to us, please," Mikey pleaded. Donnie suddenly relaxed and his breathing steadied. Leo lifted his brother off the ground and led him on the settee in the living room. Mikey wandered off to see where Raph had got to. He searched the house but Raph wasn't anywhere to be found…and his trench coat was missing.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: -** Hi again – it's me! I'm writing as fast as I can but I don't have too much time to spare at the moment! I will, however, try not to keep you waiting _too_long for each new chapter! Ok, I'm going to make a plea for publicity – if you know anyone who you can recommend my story to then I would be really grateful as I have to prove that Fanfiction is worthwhile if I want to be allowed to keep writing it – due to my brother's complaints that I'm hogging the laptop! Thank you very much! Enjoy the chapter – and don't forget to review afterwards!!!!

"Master Splinter, Raphael is missing."

"Missing, Michelangelo?"

"His trench coat is gone and everything."

"Then he must be found. You and Leonardo will go after him while Miss O'Neill and I remain here with Casey and Donatello."

"Yes, Sensei. Geez, if he's just out seeing a movie then I'm gonna have to kill him!"

"You shall do no such thing, Michelangelo. Now fetch Leonardo and find Raphael."

"You got it, Sensei, dude," Mikey winked and strolled out of the room, "Oh, Leonardo," he put on a fake accent, "we got to go fetch the naughty Raphael!"

"Ok, Mike," Leo responded, "we'd better take our trench coats,"

"Yeah, good idea, fearless leader." Mikey clapped Leo on the shoulder.

"It comes with being me," said Leo dryly.

   Wandering the streets, wrapped in their trench coats, Mikey and Leo searched the streets for their missing brother. Raph had obviously gone out voluntarily or else he wouldn't have had his trench coat with him. That, if nothing else, gave the frantic turtles some comfort because it meant that Raph hadn't fallen into the wrong hands…at least not yet, anyway.

  Meanwhile, Raph kicked a discarded soda can as he walked around the streets of New York. He could hear male voices jeering and a woman sobbing and…a baby crying? Raph snarled in his gruff voice and followed the sound. What he found made his anger boil up inside him – and, in true Raphael style, he exploded.

  "I'd know that insane and furious roar anywhere, dude!"

"Raph's close by; come on," Leo ran off in the direction of his brother's voice with Mikey right behind him.

   They reached Raphael and saw him fighting off several of the Purple Dragons.

"What the shell are you guys doin' here?" he snapped at them.

"Looking for you – you shouldn't have run off like that Raph," Leo leapt into the fight to help his brother while Mikey got the woman and her kid to safety.

"What was I supposed to do? Sit and watch while Shredder attacks each of my brothers in turn and ends up destroying us all?!"

"No, but there was no need to get us exposed and put at even more risk than we already are." Leo protested against his hot-headed brother in red.

"Whatever, bro," Raph shrugged off Leo's criticism. There was only so much of that guy he could take. His brother was always such a perfect little Sensei's pet that it infuriated Raph when he was told of Leo's many successes and compared to him so he looked bad.

"Ok, guys," Leo ordered when Mikey got back, "we should get outta here. Mikey, is the woman safe with her kid?"

"I took 'em home, Leo, so there's nothing to worry about."

"Good job, now let's go!"

"Why should we?" Raph confronted his older brother.

"Raph, we have to stay hidden,"

"What's the point? From what I could hear of Donnie, Shredder seems to be planning an attack in three days. He knows where we are, Leo! We have to move!"

"And we will; but not without you," Leo grabbed his brother and, along with Mikey's help, practically dragged Raph back to the house.

   The Turtles were helping April pack her few personal items that she had taken with her. There was little excitement…until Mikey found a picture of April in a grass skirt doing the hula dance in Hawaii. So, naturally, he began hula dancing round the room.

"Come on and hula, do the hula hula, honey," he sang in a high-pitched voice.

"Mikey, give that photo back, and stop dancing around! I was the best hula dancer there!"

"Oh come on, Ape, it's a bit of fun. And anyway, I'm better at shaking my booty than any hula dancer!"

"If you say so, Mike," April sighed, snatching the photo off the comedian as he continued to jump round the room "shaking his booty" in Raphael's face as said turtle was trying to pack up April's many facial products.

"How the shell did you manage to get hold of all this?" he asked as he emptied yet another draw of face masks at the same time as pushing Mikey away from him.

"What? Oh, them. I got hold of them the last time we were here and never took them back to my apartment with me. I figured if we ever came here again we would be under stress – and stress lines are some of the worst lines to get on your face – really difficult to get rid of!"

"I'll never understand women!" Raph mumbled under his breath, wrinkling his nose as he sniffed the nozzle of a tube of hair removal gel-cream, "Ugh! This stuff stinks real bad!"

"So do you but I don't complain!" April retorted, throwing a cushion at the turtle in red, who caught it and threw it in turn at Mikey, hitting him square in the chest.

"Hey! That's not nice, Raphy," Mikey scolded.

"Since when am I nice?" Raphael responded smoothly.

"Uh…never…" answered Mikey nervously, backing away from his brother who was twirling a Sais in his right hand.

"Exactly," Raph's eyes gleamed but he didn't chase Mikey; he didn't feel like undergoing another series of lectures. First would be from Donnie and Leo on how Raph should give Mikey a break. Then from Casey who would complain that it was _his_ job to fight Raph. Then from April nagging Raph to stay focused on the packing of her cosmetics. And finally Raph would receive a lecture from Splinter about how it was neither the time nor place to start chasing and fighting Mikey.

    "Yo dudes," Casey entered the attic room he shared with Leo and Raph later that evening. They were sat on Leo's bed and were talking in hushed voices but they looked up and shut up when he entered for fear of him hearing them.

"Hi, Case, what ya doin'?" asked Raph casually.

"I just came to tell you that Splinter said we're leaving at midday tomorrow. We're gonna go and hide out in a place Shredder will least expect us to be."

"Which is?"

"I dunno…that's all he said," shrugged Casey, flopping onto his own makeshift bed and staring up at the ceiling.

"I just hope we can keep out of Shredder's way long enough to formulate a fool-proof plan to get rid of him," Leo sighed.

"Yeah, so far he's bounced back and bitten our butts every time!" Raph cracked his knuckles and then clenched and unclenched his fists.

"We need to get April somewhere safe though; she will have to stay in hiding while we fight," Casey said, sitting up and studying his fingernails.

"Yeah, but you're just hoping that, when we defeat the Shredder, you two can get a relationship going!" Raph laughed.

"Yeah, you're right; that is what I want…"

    Midday the next day arrived and the four turtles, two humans and an old rat left silently through the back entrance of the house. The walked through many a dark alley and took a couple of short-cuts through the sewers, knowing that if they didn't then they would risk being seen and Casey and April suddenly appearing would freak everyone out. They spent all day walking to a small slum-like layout of housing in a dodgy area just outside of New York by about a mile. It was a safe place compared to the city itself and there were sure to be some abandoned houses from where the occupants had died of diseases or had simply moved up in career and status and had therefore been lucky enough to have the funds to move to a cleaner and more respectable housing estate that was actually _in _New York.

"How do we know if a house is deserted?" Mikey asked as he peered through a grimy window into an unlit room.

"Simple, we knock on the door – people round here probably won't even know who April is and they sure as hell won't have ever heard of me! So, I just knock and if no-one answers then we wait around for a bit. If no-one comes in the next twenty four hours to that particular house then we know it's deserted!" Casey explained every small detail of his plan to the others, who listened intently and seemed to approve of the plan – but only if Casey did the knocking!

  "Hello? Who are you and what do you want?" a small voice asked, trembling, as a young child peeked round the door of a particularly grubby looking house.

"I'm Casey Jones and I need to speak with your parents if that's possible."

"I only have a mummy," the little boy said.

"Then could I please speak with her?" Casey was making up a different story at each house. They had now decided to find somebody who would let April and Casey stay with them as the turtles had insisted that they would not risk their human friends' lives through staying in the same place.

"Hello? You wished to speak to me?" the child's mother, a fierce looking woman with ratty unkempt hair that was flecked with grey, was at the door with the barrel of a shotgun aimed between Casey's eyes.

"Ah, I guess folks in this area ain't too trusting of strangers, huh?"

"We like to be cautious; a lot of dodgy people wander the streets these days."

"Tell me about it," Casey muttered, but not loud enough for anyone to hear, "Look, I'll come straight to the point. My friend and I are not welcome in our own homes anymore and we really need a place to stay. We promise we'll pay our way and help in whatever way we can. But you gotta understand; our lives are under threat and maybe, when we…uhh…trust each other, then I'll explain why we're here."

"How do I know you are not a spy from a demolishing company? And why should I give you a place to stay when I can barely survive myself?"

"Because…because…" Casey struggled to find the words.

"Because I'm doing a report on the housing in this area and need some views from the inhabitants. We're from Channel Six news and we want to try and improve the living conditions for you and your friends and family. Please, we will not ask you names or ask you anything that may get you into trouble later." April stepped forward from where she had been standing back and watching Casey squirm.

"How long do you need to stay?" the woman asked, lowering her gun and opening the door a fraction wider.

"Only for a few weeks – a month tops."

"Very well, but you will be paying your way and helping me around the house." The woman's voice was sharp and commanding but not quite as hate filled as it had been before.

"Thank you so much. You won't regret it! I'm April O'Neill, by the way, and this is my assistant and friend, Casey Jones."

"I'm Marcie and my son, who answered the door to you, is Benny. Please, do come in." she opened the door and bundled them in before shutting the door hurriedly behind her; "I suppose you'd better come and meet my family." She led them to a large, damp, dark room in which five people were seated on the floor playing Rock, Paper, Scissors.

"Whoa," Casey stopped and stared at the five children. One he recognised as Benny, "I guess you're a single mum then?"

"My husband died in a brawl three months ago to this very day."

"I'm sorry to hear that," April led a hand on Marcie's shoulder, "and who are these charming children?"

"This is Alice," she pointed at a toddler with dirty blonde hair who was hugging an old rag close to her, "and Kirsty," an older child wrinkled her nose and scowled at Casey and April, "and this is Benny," the small boy waved hesitantly, "and there's Owen and Peter, the twins," two young boys with filthy faces and shaved heads drew back at the sight of the strangers, clutching one another for comfort.

"Who are they?" Kirsty demanded of her mother.

"This is April and Casey from Channel Six news, here to help us and do a report. They're going to try and improve the living conditions for us out here, isn't that great?"

"We don't need no help; we can take care of ourselves just fine."

"Kirsty, please? I need you to co-operate.  You're eight years old and you have your whole life ahead of you; I don't want you to waste it here."

"I don't want no strangers taking over our home! It ain't fair! We got rights too and that don't mean any old city people can just come in here and think they're too good for us, offering us charity!" Kirsty stormed out and Marcie sighed, rubbing her temples.

"She tries to help but it's hard on her, living here. She's only eight and yet she is forced to behave like an adult and handle situations that no child should ever have to face. I just want what's best for her."

"We know, don't worry. We have some friends that could help you do this place up a bit if you want. They'd be happy to help…if you can keep their secret."

"Secret?"

"They're in danger too. They have rather an unusual appearance. I'm gonna go see them now and tell them we've found somewhere to stay. I'll bring them round if ya want,"

"That would be great, thanks," Marcie smiled. Even her smile seemed strained. April wasn't surprised. A single mother with five young children, all under ten years of age, and fighting to keep her family alive in a place that was a death trap for anyone who did not take care and have the knowledge of what sort of violence you could encounter and how to handle it. She watched as Casey left, disgust and sympathy mixed on his face. The smell in the house was of smoke mingles with something that smelled distinctly of vomit. _Just like the sewers,_ she mused, wondering what the turtles' reactions would be upon seeing the house and meeting the family who lived within.

**A/N: -** And there you have it! My next chapter of this story – I really hope you are enjoying reading it as much as I'm enjoying writing it! I'll try to get the next chapter up as soon as I can but I'm up in Bath for most of this week at some sort of presentation conference thingamajig with my school! See you soon!


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: -** Here you have it! My next chapter – and I'm still appealing for the Shredder Strikes Back (1 2) and Tales of Leo scripts if anyone knows where I can find them!

Casey strolled down the dusty lanes towards where the turtles and Splinter were staying. He looked round, taking in the neglected buildings and the occasional dead animal or pile of sewage which had been carelessly left on the road. This was just outside of New York, a place that time had forgotten as it rapidly moved onwards.

  "Guys! Guys? Open up! It's me, Casey. Me and April have found somewhere to stay! Come on, I know you're in there!"

"Hang on, Casey," Leo's voice rang out loud and clear. Casey heard several bolts being unbolted on the other side of the door and it opened seconds later with a creak and Leonardo's face peered warily out. Relief passed across his reptilian features when he saw it really was Casey; you could never be sure. He let Casey in and shut the door behind him.

"Yo, Case, how ya doin'?"

"Fine thanks, bonehead," Casey replied shortly to Raphael, who was behind Leo.

"That's good to hear,"

"Why?" Casey asked suspiciously.

"'Cause that means I'm the one that gets to pummel you and make ya not okay!" he tackled his friend to the ground. Seeing Leo roll his eyes, he grabbed his older brother round the knees and pulled him down as well. Leo freed himself from the wrestling match as soon as he was able to break free from Raph's iron grip but it was not before Splinter had walked into the hallway.

"Leonardo, Raphael, get up immediately. You should be upstairs helping your brothers. I will deal with Mr. Jones here."

"Yes, Sensei," Leo bowed quickly and hurried up the narrow flight of stairs to help Donnie and Mikey tidy up the house. Raph, however, remained downstairs with his arms folded to wait for Casey.

"Sensei, no offence, but why can't I stay down here and listen to what you've got to say to Casey?"

"Because, Raphael, I have ordered you to join your brothers upstairs and a good Ninjitsu master always honours his Master's wishes." Splinter looked sternly at Raph, who stomped up the stairs muttering to himself in frustration.

"Now, Mr. Jones, please follow me." Splinter led the way into a medium sized living area.

"How many rooms are there in this place?"

"Three and the hallway. There is this room, one large room upstairs, which is to be the bedroom and training area of my sons, and one smaller room which acts as a basement. That room I shall take for myself. Now, where is the house in which you and Miss O'Neill will be staying?"

"It's about a five minute walk from here. We're staying with a woman named Marcie and her five kids."

"That is good news. Have you seen much of this area in your search?"

"Only what's between here and Marcie's house. We started at the houses nearest to here and slowly moved away until we found someone who would take us."

"And this Marcie, what is she like? Does she look like the sort of woman who would be shocked by the rather striking appearances of me and my sons?"

"No, she's a tough cookie – she was aiming a shot-gun at me when she first came to the door!" Casey gave a short, bark-like laugh and ran a hand through his dark hair, which hang limply on his shoulders and framed his strong-jawed face.

"Then we shall meet Marcie and her family," Splinter nodded.

"And I kinda promised them that we'd all help do up their house and make it more bearable for them to live in; it's disgusting, Splinter,"

"We will aid them in payment for letting you and Miss O'Neill stay there," Splinter agreed, laying a hand on Casey's shoulder.

"Thanks, you won't regret it!"

"I know – something tells me that this Marcie holds a greater connection to the evil going on in this place than she is willing to admit," Splinter scratched his chin thoughtfully and Casey tried to figure out what Splinter meant.

"HEY, BOZO – YOU GONNA HELP US OR WHAT?!" Raph's gruff voice yelled down the stairs.

"I'm coming, Raph," Casey whispered and the sprinted off and up the stairs to pin his friend down from behind.

"What was that for?"

"A good ninja should always be on his guard, Raphael," Mikey imitated Splinter and narrowly avoided getting his head pummelled in by Raph.

"I'm gonna let that one go, Mikey, 'cause it's more fun to beat the crap outta Casey!" Raph growled at his younger brother, who had dived behind Leo thinking Raph was going to try and kill him for making an insult.

"Guys, I'm not here to beat up Raph – I'm here to tell you that we're gonna go and help improve the living conditions in the house that me and April are staying in." Casey stood and brushed himself off, refusing to fight Raph.

"What? Have you spoken to Master Splinter about this?" Leo asked, face etched with lines of concern.

"Yeah, and he said it would be fine – he also said something about Marcie, that's the lady we're staying with, knowing more about the evil stuff happening than she's gonna admit!"

"I'm not sure, guys. What if she reacts badly to us?" Leo said as the others began to walk out of the door and down the narrow staircase.

"She won't – she might aim a shotgun at your head but it's nothing to worry about." Casey dismissed Leo's concern with a wave of his hand, and left the house, Mikey and Raph close behind him. Donnie was a little more hesitant and waited by the door for his older brother.

"Donatello, Leonardo," Splinter stopped them as they were about to leave, "do not let your brothers or Mr. Jones tell this Marcie anything about our past and where we came from – and most of all don't tell her where we're staying."

"Yes, Sensei," Donnie answered and opened the door, followed by a subdued Leonardo – clearly still not happy that they were even going to reveal themselves to this Marcie woman.

   "Hey, Marcie, it's me – Casey," Casey called through the door, "I've brought my friends with me – you know, the ones I told you about?"

"Hang on," the sound of a chain being slid across the door and then a creak as it opened a fraction. Marcie was stood there, shotgun at the ready.

"Is that really necessary, feisty dudette?" Mike asked, using a green hand to direct the barrel away from his face.

"Sorry, but you're appearance…it startled me and you can never be too careful in this neighbourhood!" Marcie invited them in with a hand gesture and she closed the door behind them, bolting it firmly shut and sliding the chain across.

"Don't worry about it, lady, we're here to help you fix this place up," Raph said as he closely inspected the paint which was peeling from the ceiling and the walls. Mikey, meanwhile, was examining the floor and checking for woodworm. Donnie and Leo remained by the door and looked slightly uneasy about the whole situation. Neither turtle trusted Marcie. Nor did they truly believe her predicament was as serious as she made it out to be.

"I don't think she's really as poor as she says she is," Donnie whispered to his brother in blue, "do you think she could be working for Shredder?"

"Maybe, but not through her own choice – that much I'm certain of. If she _is_ working for him then she will be getting paid or given the chance for a new lease of life. That's why she doesn't seem too unhappy here and isn't jumping at the chance to have her home completely renovated. To be honest, I don't think she really lives here."

"Are you dudes coming or what?" Mikey called from the living area.

"Yeah, sure, Mikey," Donnie called back before turning back to his brother, "what do we do?"

"We don't do anything that could make her realise we're suspicious of her. We just act like the others, all eager to offer our services. But keep an eye out for anything that might help to give us a lead instead of us pursuing something that may not be true. We can't completely rule out the possibility that she really is a struggling mother with a poor family and a shabby house." Leo answered his brother in a whisper and then led the way into the living area, where their brothers were seated on the floor with Casey, April and Marcie's kids. Marcie herself was stood up in a corner of the room, her eyes darting about nervously. _The eyes,_ Leo thought, _they give you away, Marcie..._

   "Pass me the paint, Leo," Mikey said from the top of a small stepladder. It had been a week since they had first met Marcie and they had finally managed to get hold of some apple green paint and some mops and dusters. Marcie had found some old brushes in a dustbin truck that drove through every morning. She had got Kirsty to jump on the back of it, as it was only moving at about two miles an hour maximum, and search swiftly through the litter from the richer part of town. The girl had found a bag labeled with the name of a D.I.Y company and had dug through it to find a roller, palette and three reasonably good brushes as well as two that were good enough to sell for money. That's where she was at the moment; out selling the brushes and a waterproof coat she had found in the dustbin truck.

"MUM! MUM!" her voice echoed through the house, "MUM! I got five dollars! And that was just for the brushes!"

"That's wonderful! What about the coat?"

"I got seven dollars for it – plus a bag of boiled sweets! The old lady I went to was really nice – she bought the lot! We can eat tonight, Mama,"

"That's brilliant Kirsty – I'm so proud of you; we all are," Marcie picked up her daughter and twirled her round. Leo began to doubt his and Donnie's secret accusations; maybe this was all genuine after all. Maybe Marcie really was a struggling mother who just had to make do with what she could get in the world. Who knew? But he shot a guilty look at Don, who shot it straight back. The least they could do was work slightly harder for her and drop a few of the walls they had built up round themselves. They could at least make a little more conversation with her and act a bit more enthusiastic – although it probably wasn't a good idea to go to Mikey's level of enthusiasm – that would just creep everyone out!

"Yeah, well done, Kirsty," Donnie congratulated the girl.

"Thanks," Kirsty replied, slightly surprised that Donatello was talking to her and actually congratulating her for something; usually he and Leo just tried to talk to her and her family as little as possible.

"No problem – listen, we're going on a patrol round the area tonight and I was wondering if you could tell me where the most brawls would be found."

"The west area…about a mile from here, close to the centre – yes, the west of the centre."

"Thanks," Leo entered into the conversation, "Come on Donnie, Mikey, Raph – we should be going," he walked out, waving goodbye before being followed quickly by his brothers.

  "Anything?" Raph called over to Leo.

"Nothing," came the reply.

"Bugger."

"What?!" Leo called back to him.

"I said bugger – I want to kick some foot ninja butt!"

"Raph, we can't just attack them if there's a chance we can get away before they attack us. Otherwise, they might have the Elite with them and, if they do, then we'll get our shells completely crushed into a fine powder!" Leo grinned solemnly at his brother.

"Yeah, and then the Foot will enjoy a nice meal of turtle soup!" Mikey added, grimacing and sticking his tongue out, "the most nourishing meal you'll ever have – gives you special ninja powers!"

"Very funny, Mike," Leo sighed, "but this is serious."

"It's always serious with you, Leo!"

"Shut up, Mike,"

"That's not very nice," Mikey mock scolded his brother.

"I mean it; I heard something…we are being watched…"

"Invisible ninjas…" Raph hissed venomously.

"We'll need to make them visible or we don't stand a chance." Donnie said voice desperate.

"Got any spray paint?" Mikey joked, but there was fear in his voice also.

"We need to hit them like we did last time,"

"We have to try and get away," Leo glanced round, looking for a path they could escape through.

"It's no use, Leo – we have to fight this time."  
"You're right, Raph. This is it, boys. If we lose this – we'll be in a worse position than before,"

"Yeah," Raph growled, "we'll be dead!"


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: -** Here you go – sorry it took so long but I've been in France for this past week and my laptop had a virus the week before! Anyway, enjoy!

They could hear several 'whooshes' as the ninjas landed around them, still invisible. Donnie's eyes darted around nervously scared of when the first attack might come. He started to panic but realised that he had brought his turtle-vision goggles with him. They were strapped to his belt, as he had suspected that they would be attacked by the Foot Tech Ninjas at some point. He put on his goggles and saw instantly all the Foot Tech Ninjas.

"Guys! Turn and swipe!" he yelled. A foot tech ninja was behind each of his brothers, sword ready for the kill. His three brothers followed his orders and attacked their enemies, making them visible in a matter of seconds. Unfortunately, caught up in warning his brothers, Donnie had forgotten that there would be an enemy behind him as well. He twisted a little too late and was thrown to the side and into a dustbin.

"Donnie! You ok, dude?" Mikey asked, while swiping his Nunchuks at an invisible ninja.

"Yeah, I think so," Donnie groaned. Raph and Leo were fighting shell to shell to keep off the enemies and prevent themselves from being caught off guard from behind…although it still didn't solve the problem of them not being able to _see_ most of their attackers.

"Leo, we need to figure out a way to see them!" Raph said over his shoulder to his brother and leader.

"I know, Raph, I'm thinking as fast as I can."

"Well, think faster!"

"I've got it!"

"What?"

"We're near a sewage tank, right? And there isn't much waste disposal around here is there?"

"No…but I don't see where -------- oh, you're planning to throw sewage on these freaks?"

"It's the best idea we've got,"

"You got it. Let's send Mikey – he's an expert with things that smell bad, seeing as he is one!"

"I heard that, dude," Mikey called over to Raph but he knew what he had to do and ran off in the direction of the sewage tanks. They were barrels that contained all people's waste products and they were emptied once every six months. They would be perfect for tipping over the Foot Tech ninjas – and it would tell Shredder exactly what they thought of him! He sniggered quietly to himself as he grabbed one of the barrels, tipped it on its side and rolled it along back to the fight his brothers were completely absorbed in. This was going to be one of the best things he'd ever done. He was finally going to pour poo on someone! He'd sometimes wished he could pour it all over Raph but the Foot ninjas would do him just fine. Now all he had to do was figure out a way to creep up on the enemies and get them with the foul smelling waste that he was carrying in the barrel. He pulled the top off of the barrel and held his breath, wrinkling his nose at the stench given off by the brown sludge inside. He picked up the barrel and headed over to where Leo and Raph were being rapidly overpowered by their invisible opponents. He lifted the barrel and threw it……but, although it hit the ninjas and they were all visible, it also hit his brothers – and they, understandably, weren't happy.

"MIKEY! I SWEAR I'M GONNA KILL YA!" Raph bellowed at his younger brother who was cringing and looking decidedly sheepish…but not because he'd hit Raph. He felt bad about getting Leo but couldn't be happier about getting Raph. Leo was looking angry but amused at the same time – he wasn't quite as hot-headed as Raph – but this just meant he would save yelling at his little brother until they got home! Meanwhile, Donnie was having a few problems dealing with the many members of the Foot clan that had decided to surround and attack him.

"Uh, Guys? I could do with some help over here," he complained between the strikes he made at his attackers with his Bo staff.

"No problemo, Donatello," Mikey saluted his brother and went to his aid, glad to escape the wrath of a Raph covered in a load of sewage.

"Leo! What the hell are ya doin'?" Raph yelled at his brother.

"What does it look like, Raph?"

"It looks like you're trying to find a way to get into that abandoned building because you think Shredder or Hun might be in there."

"Then that's what I'm doing."

"But you'll never get inside…they'll smell ya five miles away!"

"And you think you smell better?"

"No," Raph scowled, "but if you're going to be a stupid prat and go in there then I'm coming with…I'm not losing my reputation for doing stupid things in battle to my oh so perfect brother!"

"This isn't stupidity, Raph," Leo pointed out, voice sharp.

"Oh yeah, then what the hell is it? Bravery – it ain't brave to go and get your ass kicked without your brothers, Leo."

"I know – but I wasn't going to fight. I was going to see if I could find out what Shredder's next move was going to be by listening in…"

"And you seriously think that they would be discussing their final plan here? Ha! You sure you haven't received some sort of knock on the head in this battle?"

"Raph, are you coming with me or what?"

"What about Mike and Donnie?"

"They'll be fine; half the Foot is gonna try and follow us anyway," Leo gestured to where the Foot ninjas were slowly advancing on them.

"Then what are we waiting for?" Raph's snarl was menacing and his eyes glittered wildly. Leo nodded at his brother, sheathing his right hand Katana and turning to use the other to hack the door down (it was bolted on the inside). After doing so, he sheathed his other Katana and ran into the building. Raph backed in after him and then the two brothers exchanged a brief nod before hiding in the small cupboard under the stairs to allow the Foot to tell Shredder of their presence. The Foot ninjas were stupider than they looked, and that was stupid enough! They either didn't know there was a cupboard under the stairs or had completely forgotten about it…they ran straight past the two squashed turtles that were huddled in the small space. This, if nothing else, gave Leo and Raph a little hope that their quickly thrown together plan might just work. If Shredder was about to hear of their presence and also of how badly his ninjas seemed to be doing, probably due to the lack of the Foot Tech, the Purple Dragons and the Elite, then maybe he and Hun would _have_ to discuss a final defence strategy. They were going to need it if they wanted to defeat the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles! Well, that was the turtles' opinions anyway!

"Master Shredder," a Foot ninja bowed low to his master as he entered the dimly lit room where Shredder and Hun were seated, "we are suffering a defeat out there – we need more men. And I think there are two turtles hiding somewhere in the building."

"Which two? Could you tell?"

"One was clad in red with Sais as his weapon. The other was blue and wielded double Katana. But about more men…"

"We have no more men to give until the final confrontation. We must save the best of our forces until then or we will suffer an even more embarrassing, and final, defeat."

"Yes, master, I understand, but-------"

"No buts – pull our ninjas back." Shredder dismissed the ninja with a flick of his hand but called out at the last minute, "and check the cupboard under the stairs before you leave,"

"May I ask why?" the ninja looked back. Although his face couldn't be seen under the mask, Shredder imagined that only confusion would be showing on the man's face, and perhaps a slight bitterness for being ordered to retreat.

"You want to capture the turtles who got in, don't you?" Shredder's voice was as smooth as silk.

"Yes, Master," the ninja bowed, sniggering slightly at the thought of the turtles' faces when he and some of his men opened the cupboard and beat them to a pulp…

"Leo, get your arm out of my face or I'll bite it!"

"For the last time, Raph, I can't. It's too squashed in here but we have to wait until we know the Foot have left."

"Oh, come on Leo. They must've gone by now!"

"I wouldn't be so sure Raph…they're not completely stupid," Leo said, adding under his breath, "unlike someone I know…"

"What was that, Leo?" Raph hissed, stressing each syllable of his brother's name, making him sound mocking.

"Nothing, Raph, you must be hearing things."

"I'm hearing nothing and that's the point – that means that those stupid ninjas must be gone!"

"For the last time, Raph, they are-----------"

"Hello, I believe you are trespassing…" a ninja stood over the brothers as they tumbled out of the cupboard.

"Thanks," Raph said, "I was beginning to get cramp!" he brought out his Sais, leaping to his feet and knocking out three of the ninjas nearest to him.

"Yeah, and he really isn't very good company!" Leo added, swinging his Katana and sending several more ninjas flying.

"Foot ninja, get them!" the leader yelled at his men, but they were hesitating slightly after seeing what had happened to the others, all wanting to stay fit for fighting in the final battle. They didn't move, "Fine! I'll do it myself!" the leader let out a piercing war cry and ran forward. All it took was one kick from Raph and he, too, was sent for a brief, and very painful, flying lesson. The rest of the Foot ninjas fled to join the fight against Donnie and Mike…

"Mikey! Heads up!" Donnie yelled to his brother, joking around as he threw a ninja in Mikey's direction.

"No problem, Donnie," Mikey replied, promptly whacking the unfortunate ninja for an extended trip with his Nunchuks. The two brothers met each other in the midst of the fight and managed a high five before they were once more completely swept up in the heart of the furious battle. They fought as if their lives depended on it – which was exactly their current situation.

"Mike, how do you think Raph and Leo are doing?"

"I wouldn't worry about them – I'd worry more about us! We've got the entire Foot out here…or at least, that's what it looks like to me!"

"Look, Mikey, I know they can take care of themselves but I'm just worried…I hope they're ok…" Donnie expertly swung his Bo staff round to knock another three enemies off their feet at once.

"I hope so too, but we gotta get outta here, or get in to them or something, before we get cornered." Mikey leapt over several of the Foot but landed on several more. It was a sea of black bodies, some writhing on the ground in agony and some out cold; but over half of the original amount was still fighting and the two brothers were beginning to tire. They were shaken back to their senses by a loud crash and the sound of splintering wood and falling stone. The entire structure of Shredder's hideout was crumbling and twisting. Mikey, Don and the Foot momentarily stopped fighting each other, shock running through them and sending shivers down their spines.

"RAPH! GET THE HELL OUTTA HERE!" Leo screeched, waiting by the door of the collapsing building for his brother.

"WHAT ABOUT HUN?! WE HAVE TO GET HIM!"

"NOT NOW…COME ON – BEFORE WE END UP SQUASHED!" Leo was struggling to make himself heard above the noise of the destruction Hun had caused by leaping down the stairs and throwing his two weary opponents about like rag dolls until they found their strength and threw him into the staircase between them. He had then grabbed the beams of the roof in his fury, forgetting that it would bring the entire structure down if he pulled down the supporting beams. Raph decided to co-operate and he joined his brother and the two of them dived out of the falling house only a second before it collapsed completely, leaving a massive pile of rubble where it had stood. Through the thick clouds of dust, Leo could just about make out the silhouettes of Shredder and Hun leaping away across the rooftops, the Foot following them swiftly and without a sound before the turtles could recover from the shock and stop them. The four brothers exchanged brief hugs and words of relief and then decided it would probably be best if they made their way back to their house via the long route so they could check that they weren't being followed. They had suffered yet another battle without winning or losing. It was painful to know that the fate of New York was resting with them, not a responsibility they relished very much. It was all up to them; if they didn't rid the world of Shredder then who would?

   They walked in a dejected silence, full of the tears of defeat but the tears were to remain unshed – they were so used to defeat now that it was just another day. As of yet, they had not succeeded in defeating Shredder - Bushido knows they tried – but they had not yet managed it. Surely the day had to come soon when they would finally win their long fought battle. It couldn't stay this way forever; always running but never facing and overcoming the evil that was overpowering them. Eventually one of the sides would have to win, and the longer they left it without fighting Shredder the longer their foe had to recover and get his forces back up together and come up with a new plan. Finally, Mikey broke the silence,

"So, uh, do you think you could walk a little further away from me, Raph?" he asked timidly, an unusual thing for Mikey, "it's just that you smell a bit – well, a lot actually – and it's making me feel physically sick."

"You throw someone's crap all over me then you suffer the consequences," Raph retorted shortly, hurling an evil glare in Mikey's direction. Normally, Mikey would've taken up a joke at this point while Leo lectured Raph on keeping his temper with Raph, pointing out that he was also covered in the sewage but he hadn't flipped. But Leo was too busy in his own little world to take any notice of what was happening in reality.

   The four of them were about ten minutes from Marcie's house when Donnie became the next to break the silence.

"What do we do now? Give up? Or follow Shredder until we've defeated him?"

"I dunno," Mikey's abnormally quiet voice answered.

"Why don't you ask Leo? He's the fearless leader around here…" Raph's voice was sarcastic and showed a hint of bitterness.

"Leo?" Donnie asked his older brother. Leo didn't respond; he was still dreaming, a far off look in his eyes. Only then did Donnie notice that Leo was limping – only slightly but it was still an obvious limp. He led a light hand on his brother's shoulder to try and get his attention. Leo flinched and wheeled round to face Donnie, eyes suddenly bright, alert and wary.

"We track Shredder down. If we leave it any longer then he'll just get twice as many Foot soldiers and we can't afford for that to happen." Leo's voice was quiet and a hush fell over the four brothers. They had no choice now. Leo was right – if they left it any longer than daybreak then Shredder would have the chance to appeal for new recruits to join the Foot.

  They reached Marcie's house and knocked wearily on the door but there was no answer. Confused, the brothers tried to see in through one of the grimy windows. There were no lights on anywhere inside. Now panicking, Mikey became restless.

"What if Shredder took them?"

"He couldn't have done – he went in completely the opposite direction," Donnie pointed out, "and if he had then there would be signs of a struggle and the door wouldn't be locked. Maybe Marcie and the others are asleep because we _are_ later than we said we'd be."

"Great, so now we got nowhere to stay," Raph kicked at the dirt huffily, "bluddy great."

"Calm down, Raph. We can stay at the house we were originally staying in. That way, if Shredder does try to get at us, we won't be putting anyone else in danger. We all need to sort things out and set things straight in our heads." Leo laid out his plan for the night to them, "then at daybreak we can try and find out where the Shredder is."

"Then we're gonna need to get some sleep, aren't we?" Mikey walked off in the direction of their house and disappeared through its door. Moments later they heard a muffled yell and several crashes. The other three turtles shot quick worried glances at each other and raced into the house calling for their little brother frantically.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: -** Hello everybody! I just want to say thank you to all my reviewers especially Spootycup and LionessGoddess who have religiously reviewed every chapter, and for that I am very grateful! I hope everyone enjoys my next chapter and I will update as soon as possible…………

They found their brother being held up by his bandanna by Hun. Mikey himself was limp in the grip of the giant-fisted man and Hun was getting ready to kill the orange clad turtle.

"Put him down, Hun," Leo requested, voice trembling slightly from anger and fear for his brother.

"Are you offering yourself as a sacrifice?"

"If that's what it takes," Leo replied softly. Raph flung himself between Leo and Hun.

"NO! I'm of no use to my brothers…all I ever do is cause trouble. Please, take me you giant lump of a man."

"I feel that the lives of your brothers are worth more than you. No, I do not want any of you for the lives of the others. My master wants the ultimate prize…your furry friend."

"You'll never take Master Splinter," snarled Leo stepping forward.

"One step closer," Hun drew a sword and held it to Mikey's throat, "and your precious brother dies."

"Put him down, Hun," a new, milder voice joined the pleas for Mikey's life.

"Sensei," Leo exclaimed, stepping in front of Splinter, "you can't give yourself up – it's you they want."

"No, my son," Splinter sighed, "it is you and your brothers…they just want me for baiting you to where you will be outnumbered and easily defeated." Hun roared, furious for having the plan figured out when it was going so well. He threw Mikey into Donnie and the two turtles tumbled over each other, stopping only when they hit the wall. Donnie immediately set about moving his brother into the recovery position and trying to revive him. Splinter, meanwhile, flanked by Raphael and Leonardo, advanced on Hun. The fight that followed was a vicious one. Leo was first to pass out after landing painfully on his bad ankle. Donnie watched, wincing. Leo was going to be limping for a while. Next was Raph, passing out after he skidded into the stair banister and received a nasty knock to the head. Splinter finally managed to force Hun into a retreat. Badly wounded and absolutely livid, Hun stomped out of the house and ran down the street, his heavy footfalls sending small tremors through the ground as he went.

"Donatello, go upstairs and fetch some of the medical supplies we brought with us. Then clean up Michelangelo while I deal with Leonardo and Raphael. I will check Michelangelo over after you have finished and, after I have revived them, you can give your other brothers a quick checking over. You, also, are looking worse than you should. And may I inquire as to why two of my sons seem to be covered in foul-smelling sludge?"

"Ah, yeah, that…we were fighting the Foot Tech ninjas and Mikey threw sewage on them to make them visible so we could fight them easier. But it kind of hit Raph and Leo as well."

"Then they will need to wash – but it will have to wait until tomorrow. For now, the main priority must be their healing."

  The next morning, Donnie sat on the floor in the main living room drinking a cup of tea. It was three o'clock in the morning and he had not slept well. He heard a short intake of breath behind him and saw Leo leaning on the doorframe and smiling at him. Donnie got up slowly, his muscles aching with exhaustion and walked over to his brother.

"Need help?" he offered.

"I'm fine," Leo responded, limping past him but stumbling. Donnie promptly grabbed his arm to steady him. The two of them slowly made their way back into the centre of the room and Donnie helped his older brother sit down, with his leg stretched out in front of him. Leo began massaging his bad ankle slowly to keep the blood flowing and take away a little of the pain. Donnie got him a cup of tea and then joined him.

"How are you feeling?" he asked, sitting down next to Leo and picking up his own cup to drink.

"Not great but probably better than Mikey will feel when he wakes up."

"Aren't him and Raph awake yet then?"

"No – Raph was up for a bit earlier. He woke me up saying he had to check that I was still alive! Who knows what that's about?! Mikey's been out cold ever since we moved him upstairs."

"You still stink of sewage; you know that, don't you?"

"Yeah, but there aren't really any showers here are there. You have to go to the communal ones and I don't think a giant, walking, talking turtle would go down very well!" Leo joked grimly. Donnie snickered but his face turned solemn when he realised that there had to be a reason for Leo being up so early. Otherwise, if he was feeling that bad, he would've gone back to sleep and rested up his ankle.

"Why are you up so early – you should be resting?"

"You know me, Don, I love early mornings," Leo shrugged but he wasn't convincing Donnie.

"Why are you really up?"

"We have to go after Shredder today or he'll have time to gather his troops and re-assess his position. Then we'll once again be at a disadvantage."

"Leo," Don said, exasperated at his brother, "stop over-taxing yourself. You always take on too much and then can never cope when the final showdown comes. You hide it well but you're not fooling anyone, least of all Master Splinter."

"It was worth a try," Leo was being unusually sarcastic just as Mikey had been unusually quiet the night before. They were all acting a little out of character recently – Donnie guessed that it was because of all the pressure being put on them. But he was sure they'd all be back to normal once the pressure was taken off them and they could relax…in other words, when the Shredder was dead.

"My sons, our meditation session has begun so stop fiddling around and reflect on the events of today." Splinter was beginning to get impatient. It was now four o'clock…and they had begun their meditation session and three. It had never taken this long to settle down before, but today the four reptilian brothers' minds were pre-occupied, each with their different thoughts and worries about the recent events.

"Sorry, Sensei," Raph mumbled, once again trying and failing to settle down to his reflection. Donnie and Leo had frowns creasing their faces while Mikey seemed to be struggling to find a position that wasn't too painful. Eventually Splinter gave up and sent Mikey off to get an early night.

"Michelangelo, you must go and rest – I can see you are struggling."

"Thank you, Master Splinter – I am sure I'll be fine tomorrow."

"Do not over-estimate the speed of healing, Michelangelo. You will return to your training when you are ready and no sooner."

"Yes, Master Splinter," Mikey stood slowly and swayed for a second before leaving the room. Donnie made a move to get up and help his brother but Splinter sent him a warning glance saying for him not to move, but to leave his brother be.

    Mikey reached the bedroom and collapsed on to his bed.

"Oh, man," he muttered to himself and massaged his temples, attempting to ease the pounding headache that was attacking him. _Why can't I just get a decent night's sleep for once, instead of a headache or bluddy nightmares!?_ He thought to himself, shutting his eyes and turning over so he was led flat on his back. He wished he could be of more use to his brothers. He felt guilty for having rushed into the house without thinking – he should've known it was likely to be unsafe! He'd failed his brothers again but if he told them how he felt then all they'd say is that it wasn't his fault, or that they were all to blame in their own individual ways. But it was at that moment that Mikey felt more helpless than ever; usually he could come up with a barrelful of optimistic comments, and bad jokes, for a tense situation or whenever they were going through a rough patch but right now he couldn't even do that. What use was he?

   Meanwhile, in deep meditation, Donatello felt a sense of foreboding – something telling him that the danger was not yet over. He heard a voice inside his head…the Shredder.

_You think you will be able to defeat me?_

_Yes._

_Then you are mistaken – your family is going to die one by one. Your precious rat will be first._

_You will never defeat us and you will NOT kill my father._

_Then what about one of your brothers? Which one first? Leonardo? Michelangelo? Or perhaps Raphael would be the best bet?_

_LEAVE ME ALONE!_

_No…_

"LEAVE ME ALONE!" Donnie screamed, clutching at his head. Raphael's eyes snapped open but Leonardo remained still, not even flinching at his brother's piercing yell.

"Donnie! Man, are you alright?" Raph asked, laying a hand on Donnie's shell.

"He's going to kill us! He's going to kill us one by one. He was asking me which one of you he should kill first…it could be anyone! We have to get out of here!" Donnie's voice was abnormally high pitched and frantic as he tried to explain what had passed between him and the Shredder inside his own head; but things that happen in your head are always so much harder to explain to other people, even if they are your brothers and even if you are all mutant turtles with a mutant rat as a father that practice the art of Ninjitsu. Raphael stood and helped his brother up to the bedroom and stayed by his brother's side until he was sleeping soundly.

  "Leo? Leo, snap out of it – come on, bro – just say something or move – wiggle your fingers – yell at me – or anything!" Raph shook his brother in blue and tried to make him open his eyes or say something. Even a mumble would've been better than nothing, or some sort of mental fit. Anything except the motionless silence that had come over the leader. What really worried Raphael, however, was the fact that Splinter didn't seem worried about his eldest son. He was simply drinking tea and clearing up the mess from the night before that had been so impolitely left by Hun.

"Raphael, please leave your brother. He is finally meditating peacefully and he has many dilemmas in his mind that he must sort out."

"Yes, Master Splinter. I was just worried that maybe the Shred-head was controlling Leo or speaking to him in his head, you know, telling him how each and every one of us is gonna die a slow and painful death…"

"I know, my son. But you too must rest; Donatello is resting, I presume?"

"Sleeping like a baby."

"That, at least, is good news," Splinter sighed, weary with the recent battle, "I, too, must turn in for I am weary and need to get rest if we are to go seeking out the Shredder. I will not leave you and your brothers to face him on your own again so this time you will have back-up."

"Ok…sleep well, Sensei. I'll stay with Leo until he snaps out of it."

"Very well, my son, although I feel it is not absolutely necessary I am sure Leonardo will be grateful for your concern." Splinter smiled warmly at his son and walked out of the room. Raph stood and stared after him, waiting until he heard the door to Splinter's room click shut before he knelt back down and watched his brother…but he was soon slumped over, head on his chest, asleep…he'd been watching Leo for two hours.

  "Raph? Raph? Wake up – it's morning," Raph heard the voice of his elder brother coming through to him and invading his dreams.

"What?" Raph's voice slurred as he yawned and opened his eyes reluctantly. Leo was stood over him smiling, looking exhausted, but smiling at his brother in amusement but with a little sympathy.

"You didn't have to stay down here all night."

"Why didn't you snap out of it when I shook you? Could you or couldn't you hear me? I was worried sick!" Raph staggered tiredly to his feet and Leo stepped in with a helping hand.

"I don't know. I woke up at about two o'clock this morning and found you asleep here. I assumed that maybe the same thing had happened to you as it did to me, but Master Splinter was up earlier and he told me you'd stayed to keep watch. I don't know what happened last night. One minute I heard Mikey leave the room and then I heard Donnie scream but I couldn't bring myself out of meditation…I was seeing something…Master Splinter was dead – everyone was dead. I was the killer but I wasn't me because my body was led alongside yours. I was Shredder…but I don't know why I saw that."

"Maybe you were inside Shredder's mind. Maybe you saw Shredder's dream and what he plans to do to us."

"That's what Master Splinter said…" Leo's voice had become quiet and concerned.

"Did you see anything else?"

"Yes…I looked down at my body and there was no armour on it. There was blood and tattered clothing but no armour. My hands were covered in the blood of us and I felt…I felt as if I was all powerful…"

"Do you know where it was set?"

"It was in a large room with white walls and a polished wooden floor. The Foot and Hun were stood around jeering at us. Then something came out of my mouth that I didn't understand…"

"What? What did you say?"

"I'm not exactly sure what it meant but I said 'Those who have tried to kill me will now suffer at my hand. The bait was thrown, bitten and we reeled in our fine catches. Now, let us celebrate the death of those who caused me strife.'" Leo finished and bit his lip, looking as though he had more to say.

"Why is that confusing – it seems straight forward to me."

"That's not all there is. It's the last bit that confused me. 'From here we lure you to us. Not in this room but a yard. The final battle is now approaching. While you see all your bodies so scarred. You're more foolish than you can see. The worst is yet to come. You don't seriously think that what you see is real. But you will still come hunting for me…'"

"Leo…I think the Shredder conjured up that illusion in your mind. He's _trying_ to make us come looking for him. He will kill us when we go on the hunt for him. While we try to avoid finding the room in your dream he will get an ambush ready at a place he is sure we will pass through. But the part about the bait is still confusing…"

"I know – that's the part I was worried about. I know that what I saw was what Shredder wanted me to believe would happen to us. But the part about the bait is confusing but I just thought nothing of it - I thought nothing of it. I thought that maybe it was just a red herring but it now seems as if it was the only truth told in my dream. Oh shell, Raph, what do I do?" Leo frowned, pacing up and down the length of the room with Raph's watchful eyes following him. Suddenly, Leo froze and clutched his stomach.

"Leo?" Raph took one step towards his brother but Leo turned and swung his fist at Raph's face. Raph reached up and grabbed Leo's hand just before it reached his face.

"What d'ya think you're doing?!"

"You can't come near me! There's something coming – it's attacking me! Shredder's here, Raph! You have to help me!" Leo fell to the floor, breathing heavily. Raph backed off and called to Splinter, who came hurrying into the room a few moments later.

"What is going on here?"

"I don't know, Sensei. Leo was just telling me about his dream and then he tried to hit me but I caught his hand. And then I called for you…"

"Leonardo! Stand up immediately!" Splinter's eyes glinted as he gave orders to his son. Leo rose shakily and walked towards Splinter, eyes blank and cold. Splinter regarded his son without emotion and raised his hand. He rested his hand on Leo's forehead and closed his eyes. Raph had backed off so far that he was practically up against the wall. He did not see fit to interfere with whatever his Sensei was doing.

    An hour later and Splinter let out a long sigh and withdrew his hand from Leo's head, his expression softening as he gazed upon his son once more. This time there was love in his eyes and he smiled at his son as Leo opened his eyes.

"Master Splinter, what happened?"

"The Shredder led you to believe that we were all to die and, inside, you believed that it was all your fault because you were the one seeing through Shredder's mind."

"Leo, is that true?" Raph asked, shocked that his brother would blame himself for the deaths of their family just because of some stupid dream. Leo didn't answer his brother, only blushing slightly and casting his eyes down to the floor. Raph shook his head in disbelief and strode out of the room. He'd expected Leo to be the strong one that would never give in to the Shred-head and his endless plans to annihilate them.

"My son, do not trouble yourself with Raphael. I will talk to him. He is suffering as much as anyone in this; he is just doing a better job of hiding it. If Shredder was to attack his mind then there is a very good chance that he would not tell anyone for fear of taking the attention off of your brothers' injuries and the attacks on them. He also fears for losing his aggressive reputation as the turtle of steel…what he does not realise is that even he is allowed to show fear and sadness. Now, you must rest. It is a quarter past eight and you can get a few more hours sleep before we join Marcie and her family for lunch."

"Yes, Sensei." Leo bowed quickly and hurried out of the room and up the stairs. Things were getting far too complicated for his liking.

**A/N: -** Not so much of a cliffhanger this time but still, hopefully, enough to keep everyone happy! I'll be back soon so please review so I know what I'm doing right and if there's anything that you want done better. See you soon! Luv ya – Dory's human replica. XxXxXxXxX


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: -** Sorry about the short chapter. And sorry if it's a bit obvious what's going to happen in the next chapter. But I needed to do something to---- wait, I'm not telling you anything! Read for yourselves and I'll update soon……and, by the way, don't forget to review! And a BIG THANK-YOU to Lioness  Goddess for finding me stuff on Tales of Leo and also to Soon to be world renown Gracie for her review – don't worry – no objects are being thrown your way!!!! Anyway, enjoy!

"What troubles you, my son? And do not tell me that it is because of your brother. There is more to it than that and everyone knows it." Splinter sat next to his son, who was seated outside the house with his back to the wall and he was absent-mindedly drawing a picture in the dirt which he hurriedly covered up when Splinter arrived.

"It's because we haven't defeated Shredder yet. We should've got rid of him by now – we've been fighting him for too long and it just isn't fair. The bluddy family is falling to pieces; Mikey, Donnie and now Leo. We're all saying and doing stuff that's so completely out of character and we find ourselves fighting in silent quarrels. If Shredder isn't dead soon then we're done for." Raph growled, "I'll meet you all at Marcie's…I need to talk to Casey."

"Very well, my son but be careful." Splinter sighed as Raphael headed of down the road to Marcie's house. Splinter was half through the door of the house when he spotted some markings in the dirt – it was Raphael's drawings. It was several small pictures of what seemed to resemble Shredder and what Raphael wanted to happen to him. The many torturous deaths included Shredder impaled on a spike, Shredder chained upside down having his genitals chopped off, the turtles playing football with Shredder's head and Shredder being beaten with each of the turtles' weapons. Splinter took a deep breath and scrubbed out the drawings with his walking stick, shaking his head as he walked back into the house. He would have to do something to track down Shredder or their family would truly fall apart, whether it would be because of death or through frustrations and each of his sons' individual inner torture.

  "Mikey, Donnie, we're leaving for Marcie's," Leo woke his two younger brothers and the three of them trudged down the stairs to meet Splinter at the bottom and go for lunch with Marcie, her family, April and Casey.

    "Hey, guys, how are you all?" April greeted her friends with brief hugs, "Raph's with Casey in the lounge if you want to go and see him. He arrived a while ago and said you'd be along later but he'd needed to talk to Casey. What happened the other night? We were starting to think the Shredder had got you."

"We just got a bit of a bashing, Ape, that's all," Mikey smiled. He didn't want April to know how badly they were beaten, or that their chances of defeating Shredder were getting slimmer by the minute.

"We tried to call back here after the battle but we couldn't get any response when we knocked on the door. Then yesterday we were too tired," Donnie explained, shrugging. It wasn't that big a deal – they had been in battles before and not seen either of their human friends for weeks afterwards…but this _was_ slightly different and Donnie couldn't help but feel worried.

"Well, I'm just glad you're ok – come in," April beamed at them, eyes sparkling in happiness.

"Thank you Miss O'Neill, but where is the mistress of this house?" Splinter inquired, craning his neck to see past April. Marcie was standing back in the shadows, dark circles under her eyes from lack of sleep.

"Your arrival has caused a disturbance with the locals. There's talk starting up of deadly mutants who are to be avoided at all costs. Most people here would side with Shredder and if they ever catch so much as a glimpse of you for what you really are then you will be either captured or driven out of this community…as will my family for playing host to your friends." Marcie hissed, making it impossible to tell whether she was on their side or not. One minute she was the friendly, smiling hostess and was laughing and thoroughly enjoying some decent company. The next minute she would be hissing at them, avoiding their eyes and acting coldly towards them by ignoring their offers of help and keeping the children and herself at a distance. Today was going to be one of those days.

    "You are putting everyone in danger – haven't you got any idea where this Shredder guy is?" Marcie asked them as she served the drinks.

"Well, two of my sons had dreams last night that mirror each other perfectly." Splinter frowned, clearly confused by the matter, "the fact is, one of these dreams is the key to the true whereabouts of our enemy. The other is merely a hoax to throw us off the trail. If we pick the right one to follow, then we shall find Shredder. If we pick the wrong one, we find everything but Shredder."

"Wait one moment, Sensei. You said two of us had dreams!" Mikey stopped Splinter, "I know I had a dream that we died in a junkyard but I was Shredder and I said something about us being foolish and the worst hadn't happened. And that we were to meet our doom in a room or something crazy like that. But who had the other dream and how does it match mine?"

"I had the other dream, Mike. I dreamt that we died in a room and I was Shredder. I also said a speech about foolishness and not really dying in a room but in a yard. That must be how they match." Leo sounded slightly apprehensive about speaking of the dreams in front of Marcie, "but Sensei, how do we find out which dream to follow? Do we take a guess and risk being wrong or do we wait until we're certain?"

"Usually I would recommend waiting as a true ninja should but, just for once, we will have to make an educated guess and hope we go to the right place. There is no other option. I can see no way out of this impending battle, whichever path we take, but I can see that we will be met by Shredder, Hun and the Foot or by the Foot Tech and the Foot Elite. Either way, we do not stand much of a chance in our present states."

"We can fight! There is nothing wrong with us!" Raphael protested, looking to his brothers for back-up but none came, "Guys?"

"Raphael, look at your brothers and then look at yourself. Michelangelo is still suffering from his bruises injuries and to aggravate them would lead to infection. Donatello is exhausted and will not be able to keep up with the pace of the fighting. Leonardo is still limping and therefore would not be able to perform to his usual standard. And don't think I haven't noticed your suffering, Raphael. Like Donatello, you are suffering from exhaustion and also from increasingly severe headaches due to you not resting enough. You took a nasty knock to the head. I would want you all at your very best before I attempted to fight Shredder and his forces again; and right now you are in no fit state to fight." Splinter's stern gaze prevented Raph from continuing the argument further. He could see his father's point. None of them would make it through the first five minutes, let alone defeat Shredder.

"Splinter, if I could interrupt for a second," Casey looked up at the rat, "what actually happened the other night? Why does Raph reek of sewage? What is all this dream stuff about? And can I offer my support in the upcoming fight?"

"Raphael's odour is less than pleasant today as Michelangelo tipped sewage over him and Leonardo while making the Foot Tech ninjas visible. I do not want to go into a detailed explanation of the battle as I was only there for the last part so you will have to ask one of my sons. The dreams are our only hope of finding Shredder, provided we pick the correct one to follow. And yes, your support would be much appreciated when it comes to the final battle. I hope that answers all of your questions for the while."

"Thanks," Casey turned to April and whispered in her ear, "Did you get a word of that?"

"Not a bit," April giggled.

"Then perhaps you will understand more if my sons explain it to you; but for now that will have to wait as it appears to be lunchtime." Splinter replied shortly as Marcie walked back into the room with a plate of cucumber sandwiches. She placed them in the middle of the circle made up of her family, Casey and April, four turtles and a rat.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Tuck in," she said, a small smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.

"You are most kind." Mikey thanked her, imitating a posh English accent.

"Drop the act, Mike," Raph snorted.

"Ok, Raph, no need to be so blunt," Mikey sniffed. Raph rolled his eyes and Mikey pulled a face at him while his back was turned and then began eating. Donnie looked slightly hesitant about eating. He didn't know why but he just felt like there was something wrong with the whole situation. But he eventually pushed his fears aside - he was getting way too paranoid - and tucked eagerly like everyone else…but not before he thought he saw a flicker of doubt on Leo's face from across the room. Both turtles thought nothing of it; what could be wrong with a simple cucumber sandwich?

****


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: -** I hope this chapter is long enough…it's longer than the last one by about a page in Word so it should be ok. Another freakish cliffhanger style ending…but if you don't like them then just skip the last line! Now, I'm going to stop waffling and let you read the story!

"You have done well, my servant," Shredder's deep voice growled through his mask at the woman stood in front of him, "You shall be richly rewarded when the time comes and I am basking in all the glory of this wretched world."

"Thank you, master," the woman bowed deeply, "but why did you send the visions?"

"Merely a distraction, nothing more…after all, if they had not been so wrapped up thinking about it then they would've smelt the poison and perhaps would've found my whereabouts and uncovered you, my greatest ally."

"Flattery gets you nowhere, master. But surely it would've been more profitable to send a vision of fake whereabouts rather than giving them a vision of your Headquarters?"

"Not necessarily. Now that they are here they will feel foolish for not doing as they had originally planned and setting out right away."

"What are you going to do with them?"

"You gave them enough poison to make them ill for a month but not to kill them, correct?"

"Correct, master, they will grow steadily worse for a month and will recover in the month after that. The times may vary according to how much poison I put in each sandwich."

"You varied the amounts?"

"Yes, I put less in those for who was weakened already or who were bound to eat plenty, and more in those that were for the strong."

"Will it make a difference?"

"No, master, for their varying strength levels balance out the poison so that the time span is the same for each."

"Excellent. Hun, you will lock them up. And you, my servant, shall return to your home and I will send a message to you when the time comes for you to rise with me and share in my rewards." Shredder guided the woman out of the room. He had a mask on but no armour. His clothes were tattered and his hands were bloody. The unconscious forms of his enemies were placed in front of him, "how foolish you all are. Believing that in the vision you were dead when you lay in this room. Did you not wonder why my hands were bloody and yet there was no blood on you? Did you not realise that your 'bodies' were in fact breathing and that the Foot around me were all standing and looked calm and relaxed? So here I have you," Shredder was talking to his enemies even though they were unconscious, "right where I want you. Now you will die one by one…and your human friends will watch and live to serve me when I become all powerful. Lock them away! I do not wish to see them again until tomorrow when I will…oh, how to put this…when I shall gloat!" Shredder removed his mask and his thin lips curled into a malicious smirk as Hun and the Foot Elite dragged the limp forms of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles out of the room to the empty cellar underneath his HQ building. Now the real fun and games began…………

   Michelangelo awoke to the sound of someone sniffing and throwing up alternately. He sat up and saw Donnie across the room and he was doubled over and vomiting. Mikey began to stand but a sudden burst of sharp pain in his stomach stopped him and he had to content himself with crawling.

"You ok, Don?" he asked, already knowing the answer. Donnie knew his brother knew the answer too.

"What do you think?" he snapped back at his younger brother, glaring at him.

"Sorry, I just thought I'd ask."

"I know – sorry, Mikey, but there's just no hope anymore. We're in the clutches of the Shredder as are April and Casey. Splinter is in meditation and he won't come out of it."

"What about Raph and Leo?"

"Raph's still asleep and Leo's trying to find a way out. And April and Casey aren't even being kept down here. They're being forced to serve the Shred-head as slaves and they have to run errands for him; April around the HQ and Casey fighting the Foot's new recruits to train them up."

"Oh, man, that's bad. Where is Leo?"

"He's somewhere by the door at the bottom of the staircase trying to break it down, I think." Donnie sighed, pointing Mikey in the direction of the locked door. Mikey patted Donnie on the back and then walked off to find his eldest brother.

"Leo?" Mikey called as he walked into the shadows. The cellar was extremely large but completely empty. It was cold with stone walls and stone floors. Leo didn't answer his brother but Mikey followed the sound of laboured breathing and found Leo doubled over like Donnie had been and on the verge of collapse. He was sweating and Mikey could see his eyes glazed over with pain and sickness.

"I knew…Marcie…traitor…" Leo stammered as he tried to keep his breathing steady.

"You and Donnie both knew – that's why you've fallen ill first. Next will be me and Raph – there was poison in those sandwiches." Mikey put an arm round his brother's waist and draped one of Leo's arms over his shoulders, helping him to stand and walk back to where Donnie was. Raph was now awake and sat with Donnie but he was swaying and looked as though he was suffering from a migraine. Mikey staggered as he felt a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach. Before he knew what was happening, he'd dropped Leo and was emptying the contents of his stomach across the floor of the cellar. He groaned and looked over to Raph briefly, pleading silently for help. His injuries from the fight with Hun were flaring up and he didn't feel too good. His eyes rolled up into his head and he fell forward onto the floor and into his own vomit. Raph grimaced at Leo who just smiled back weakly.

"You ok, bro?" Raph asked.

"I'll be fine…at least I'm still conscious." Leo replied, glancing over at Donnie who was also now unconscious on the floor, led in the contents of his own stomach. Leo felt himself coming over all dizzy but he fought it off as best he could and crawled over to Raph. They leant up against the wall next to each other after pulling their two younger brothers out of the mess on the floor.

"What has happened to us? We were a flawless fighting team and we were never defeated this badly before."

"We went through individual defeats but this is, as you say, our first major failure when we've been working together. He's captured us separately but never the whole team, Sensei, you, me, Donnie, Mike, Casey and April."

"I know – what the hell happened?"

"Shredder just keeps coming back. He's injured us, scarred us and attacked our minds. He just won't die. Every time we fight him he just comes back ten times stronger." Leo put his head in his hands, despairing over the hopelessness of it all. Raph sighed heavily and glanced sideways at his older brother. Leo's eyes were drooping and he looked as if he would pass out at any minute.

"Get some rest, Leo. You look awful."

"Well so do you. You need to rest too, Raph, or you'll go downhill as well. This poison isn't meant to kill us."

"How do you know that?"

"I wasn't fully unconscious when Shredder was talking. He talked as if we were going to live. They must be weakening us so we have to fight Shredder because Shredder wants to finish us off himself."

"Nothing's simple anymore, huh?" Raph asked five minutes later, but he received no answer. He looked to his brother sat next to him but Leo was asleep, head leaning on Raph's shoulder. Raph rested his own head on Leo's and was also soon asleep. Right now the brothers needed each other more than they were willing to admit.

   "My sons - wake up," Splinter nudged his sleeping sons gently, standing above them and regarding them fondly. It seemed that Mikey and Donnie had both kept each other company, between them covering the floor around them with various piles of vomit. Raph and Leo were asleep a few metres away and they were getting along better than they had in a long time, probably because they were asleep, so Splinter did not dare to wake them.

"Master Splinter?" Mikey yawned, nudging Donnie as he tried to move. But they were in pretty much the same position as Leo and Raph. If one moved then the other would fall to the floor and an argument would follow, although this did apply more to the two elder turtles as they were less tolerant of each other.

"You must keep yourselves busy. We cannot possibly know what the time is here in this suffocating darkness. We have only one dim light, discovered by Leonardo before you all fell ill. We shall, at least, have a small area in the centre in the room where we can keep ourselves occupied and spend our time down here. Now, I shall wake your brothers, Michelangelo. Please make sure Donatello awakes in the next few minutes…but wake him gently." Splinter's eyes held a knowing look as Mikey looked rather disappointed. Splinter went to stand before his eldest sons to wake them but they were stirring and already arguing.

"We can't just laze around, Raph, or we'll go insane!" Leo scolded his brother.

"Hey, we're already insane – please just spare me the lectures for one measly day!" Raph retorted.

"Just give me a break, Raph, will you? We won't know when a day has passed so I guess I'll just have to keep lecturing you until you comply." Leo answered his brother shortly, standing up and stretching but swaying and blinking his eyes multiple times, willing the bright colours clouding his vision to disappear, "and we have to keep ourselves busy and in practice or this illness will dominate us for longer and we'll have even less of a chance against Shredder than we do now."

"You just have to be the perfect one, don't you?" Raph muttered.

"No, I'm just the only one, other than Sensei, that sees the importance of defeating Shredder."

"How can you say that? We all want him dead, Leo," Raph snarled.

"But you're not willing to work to do it. We won't kill him without putting in the work first. We'll be lucky to survive the battle as it is. By the end of this week we'll barely be able to stand!"

"I know – but I don't care about the work – I just want Shredder dead."

"Wanting him dead for revenge is not enough, my son," Splinter said.

"I hate to say it, Sensei, but revenge would be good. Look at what he's done to us!" Leo admitted sheepishly.

"I know, my son. And it is only fair for you to want him dead after what he has put you all through. Your reasons are justified but the work must be put in. Like you say, Leonardo, this illness will have reached its peak in the next week or so and that will be when Shredder summons us to take us on."

"Yes, Sensei, I understand." Leo bowed, walking over to Donnie and Mikey. Raph grunted and made to follow his brother, arms folded, but he was stopped by the sight of a walking stick right in front of him. He turned back to his father and looked at him quizzically.

"What is it, Master Splinter?"

"I want you to promise me you will work. If you really wanted revenge then you would be willing to work for it."

"I do want revenge!" Raph was getting indignant.

"Then promise me you'll work."

"I…I…I promise, Sensei."

"Thank you, Raphael. Now join your brothers. Keep yourselves amused as I very much doubt Shredder shall be feeding us today though he has provided us with a small barrel of water each so we will be alive to fight him. Now go, and try to forget our opponent and our present situation for the while."

"Yes, Master Splinter, I will," Raph bowed and turned to his three brothers. They were soon playing an amusing, if not slightly unusual, game of charades. The reason for its peculiarity was the fact that their gestures were often misinterpreted as they were playing with very little light. So some of the answers they came up with for another's charade were extremely amusing and even Splinter would find himself chuckling quietly as he heard his sons acting like seven year olds again. He was also feeling immensely proud of them for making the best of their situation, despite having the knowledge that they were all to become dangerously ill for the next few weeks. Thankfully, none of them had eaten enough of the sandwiches for the illness to cause them to lose their senses. Michelangelo was being his usual optimistic self while Donatello tried to figure out a scientific way to increase the amount of light they would have. Raphael and Leonardo were arguing over who had more points in charades and both seemed to be acting like their old selves again – Splinter was not sure whether this was a good or bad thing. But all of his sons kept coming over all dizzy and ill and it worried him to see them like that. Splinter himself was using meditation to fight the illness for his sons' sake but he knew that the illness would eventually claim him too and he would suffer the same fate as his four precious sons and they would at least die with honour. Even Splinter doubted their ability to win.

**A/N: -** So, now even Splinter doubts their ability to win…that can't be good! Find out what happens when I publish my next chapter!


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: -** So…here is the next chapter…you'll be seeing a lot more vomit through the next few chapters! Not pleasant but at least it proves that Marcie (who I do own) can do something useful for someone! We all want the turtles to kick Shredder's ass once and for all…but nothing's ever simple for the heroes in a story, is it? If it was, there would be no excitement! Anyway, please review and continue to enjoy this story as much as I have enjoyed writing it. But I will have to bring the story to a close at some point…but the question is when…have fun reading!

The days passed slowly and the turtles grew steadily weaker, Master Splinter very rarely coming out of meditation as his sons began to lose their abilities to fight skillfully due to the illness caused by the poison. Mikey was throwing up all over the place as was Donnie while Leo and Raph were often overcome by dizziness or by the clouding of their vision. But at least it was peaceful; Raph has practically lost his voice and Mikey was never really in the mood for talking as he was too busy emptying his stomach multiple times a day – even when there was nothing to empty. Donnie spent a lot of time sat on his own, rocking back and forth in a vain effort to keep himself warm. Leo spent his time muttering to himself and trying to find a way out of their dingy prison. The stench was awful from the vomit that seemed to coat about a third of the floor space overall. Just the stench was enough to make someone gag. They were being given food now, the only problem being that none of them could keep it down for more than half an hour! It was usually a low down new recruit to the Foot that fed them but today no-one had been. They were given one meal a day at irregular times each day to stop them figuring out what time of day it was. They may not have been able to keep it down but they still wanted food so they had something to throw up instead of stomach fluids or just dry heaving.

"Good morning, guys," a familiar male voice greeted as they opened the food hatch in the door and passed through a tray of food.

"Casey!" Raph exclaimed, jumping up to go and meet his friend but stumbling several times on his way to the door. He clutched the inside of the now open food hatch for support.

"Hey, Raph," Casey whispered, "look, you gotta keep your voice down as Hun's waiting at the top of these stairs. But I'm allowed to feed you guys now and maybe I can keep you updated on Shredder if I get any tit-bits…although he is very careful about talking in front of me. You guys look awful…"

"You'd look awful if you hadn't been given the antidote for the bluddy poison!" Raph snorted sourly.

"Look, I could try and get hold of some for you but Hun doesn't let me out of his sight…only to go to the loo and even then he waits outside or leaves me with a Foot Elite ninja."

"Nah, don't worry. Just keep us informed of what time of day it is when you bring us food, ok?"

"Sure, Raph," Casey smiled, but was stopped by the sound of Hun's deep voice, "I gotta go – hang in there and say hi to the others for me."

"I will. Thanks, Case," Raph smiled at his friend as the food hatch was shut and bolted. At least now they had someone they could talk to…Shredder must be stupider than they thought he was in the first place. Raph turned and rested his back against the metal door, sliding himself down onto the floor and looking across the room, squinting to make out the forms of his sleeping brothers. At least they knew it was morning now. And Casey could help them keep track of time…which had to be a good thing.

   "That's right, Don, just empty your system," Leo gripped Donnie's shoulders as his younger brother threw up for the third time so far since they had been awake. Raph had told them of Casey's visit and that had given them a little hope to be going on with, "I told you eating the food wasn't a good idea just after you'd woken up!" Leo scolded Donnie as the turtle in purple shakily straightened himself up and stood with Leo's help. Said brother was looking more exhausted than any of them because Raph had now started throwing up everywhere and Leo had taken on the role of keeping them all in one area of the room while they vomited. So, naturally, Leo was worried about when this stage of the illness was going to hit him and who would look after them when that happened.

   Two days later that stage came. It arrived suddenly. Leo was assuring Mikey that he would start to feel better soon and that the illness was nearly over when he felt a sharp pain in his stomach. He cringed silently as he realised that he was about to suffer the same stage of illness as his brothers. Donnie already seemed to be recovering. The reason Donnie was recovering early and Leo lasting longer then the others before being ill was probably because he and Donnie were the ones who'd hesitated and had, therefore, eaten less than the others. Donnie was now able to walk and alarm bells began ringing in his head moments before he heard a nasty choking sound in the darkness. Rolling his eyes, he shuffled over, still a little off balance, expecting to find Mikey on his knees and Leo once again covered in his little brothers vomit.

"Leo, you should learn to sit behind him in stead of sitting in the line of fire!" Donnie laughed as he started to make out the silhouettes of his brothers. But there was something strange about them. Mikey was led on his side, unmoving, and Leo was doubled over on his knees and gasping for breath as he threw up over and over again. Donnie sighed and knelt beside his brother, "so the vomit finally got you too, huh?" he gripped his brothers shoulders tightly as Leo had done for him, hoping to offer something in the way of comfort.

"Was…talking to…Mikey…" Leo gasped, gagging between every other word, "suddenly…felt like…sick…"

"Don't worry bro. A few more days and you'll be back to normal."

"What's going on? Something sounds like a strangled cat!" Raph was using the wall as support as he walked towards them, "and this time, it ain't me."

"Leo's going through the same stage as us…just as I'm recovering from it," Donnie explained to Raph, "he'll be ok in a few days."

"Damn."

"Excuse me?"

"I was hoping for a week's peace and quiet…no such luck!" Raph said, holding up his hands in mock surrender to show it was a joke when both Leo and Donnie glared daggers at him.

"Can you just stop being so insensitive for once, Raph?" Leo just about managed to blurt out before retching again.

"He has a point, Raph. He looked after you and didn't make comments so it's only fair that you return the favour. I know you're still suffering from it but we could do without you making pointless and unhelpful comments every minute of the day!"

"Sorry, Don, but I'm just trying to keep things at least slightly normal in the group. Besides, what else is there for me to do?"

"Well, if you're feeling better, you can help me out a bit," Donnie suggested, knowing all too well what the answer would be.

"Nah, I think I feel a dizzy spell coming on. I'm gonna go and lie down," Raph put on a dramatic stagger as he left Donnie with Mikey and Leo.

"Typical," Donnie muttered, still gripping his older brother's shoulders but letting him gently down to the floor when he realised that Leo had passed out. Letting out a deep breath, he sat by his two sleeping brothers and looked from one to the other, hoping that both would recover in time for their battle with Shredder. Shredder had obviously under-estimated their strength and speed of recovery. If he wanted them weak then he would have to fight them soon. Otherwise they would recover and would either defeat him or have some chance of escape.

"Donnie, you'll wanna hear this!" Raph yelled over to him. It seemed Casey had arrived and was standing at the door, a look of nervous fear on his face.

"What's up?" Donnie asked casually.

"It's Shredder. He's planning to fight you tonight. He's upping the stakes so you _have_ to fight him. He says if you don't fight him then he'll kill April and me."

"What?!" Donnie's eyes widened.

"What do we do, Don?" Raph whispered.

"I don't know. When does he want to fight us?"

"He'll send me back down to fetch you in four hours; at six o'clock tonight. I gotta go before Hun finds out I've told you what's going to happen. I just thought you deserved some warning." Casey bit his lip and hurried back up the stairs, leaving Don and Raph frozen in the doorway.

"Wrong, ain't it?" Raph broke the awkward silence.

"What? Us having to fight the Shredder?"

"No, seeing someone like Casey so nervous and freaked out that he's scared to talk to us for fear of discovery. The Casey I know wouldn't care."

"But he cares because if he makes one slip-up then he and April will both die and we won't have anyone to keep us sane."

"What's happened, dudes?" a voice behind them asked. Raph and Donnie wheeled round to face Mikey and Leo, who were using each other for support. Both had dark rings under their eyes and were obviously fighting off a great deal of nausea.

"We have to fight Shredder." Donnie answered simply, keeping his voice deliberately calm.

"We knew we would have to…" Leo said, confused, "…so why are you looking shocked?"

"We have to fight him in approximately four hours. Casey's just dropped the bombshell…"

"Bluddy Shredder could've at least given us a little more warning!" Raph kicked at the metal door but winced sharply as his foot connected with the solid iron of the door. His three brothers were stifling laughter and glancing guiltily at each other, knowing they should probably help Raph, who was currently hopping round the room in agony, but they needed the mood lightened and Raph kicking the door had certainly relieved some of the tension in the room.

"Don't hurt yourself, Raph. We'll need both your feet in this battle!" Leo grinned shakily, still leaning heavily on Mikey who was leaning back equally heavily. If one had stepped away from the other then they would both have fallen to the floor.

"We don't stand a chance. Sensei's still in meditation, Casey and April are both serving the Shredder and Leo and Mike aren't capable of doing much. Heck, they can't even stand up properly. And you, Raph, are still a little wobbly on your feet and I'm still getting the headaches." Donnie went through the list, looking around the room as if a miracle was going to appear any second.

"How come you and Leo seem to be on a different time span with this illness?"

"Because I only ate one sandwich and Leo only ate two. You and Mikey ate who knows how many! And with Mikey weak in the first place he was always going to suffer longer. Shredder under-estimated our strength. If he'd got the right dosage into our bodies then we'd all be out cold right now or in the same state as Mikey and Leo." Donnie grimaced. The thought of what was going to happen and what could've happened was not particularly pleasant and he didn't really want to dwell on it for too long.

"So…what do we do brainiac?"

"I don't know. Anyone got any ideas?" Donnie looked hopefully at his three brothers, willing them to come up with something. His gaze eventually locked with Leo's and Donnie knew his brother had something in mind, "Leo? What are you thinking?"

"I'm not sure this will work…it's going to be risky."

"Well, risky is all we got at the moment."

"I know, but this plan doesn't involve fighting Shredder," Leo waited for the shocked gasps and confused mumblings from his brothers to subside, "we get Casey to distract Shredder with April's help. Then we go up behind him and Donnie knocks Shredder out with his Bo."

"All very well, but how do we actually get out of there?"

"We climb. There are beams across the roof. I saw them in my dream and if we climb them then we can drop from above onto those with April and Casey. We free them and get out of there, fighting if we have to."

"That won't work," Raph scoffed.

"You got any better ideas?" Leo snapped. Raph shook his head in response and Leo continued, "Two of us will have to stay on the floor to keep the attention off those attempting to climb onto the beams."

"Ok, but who stays?"

"We'll need you on the floor, Don," Leo replied, "and Raph will climb. Then we'll see tonight which out of me and Mike are feeling more up to the job."

"Got it," Don nodded, "now you and Mikey need to rest. We don't want you two throwing up all over the place tonight." Leo didn't argue and he and Mike walked off, the only things keeping them upright being each other.

    "Guys?" Casey whispered through the hatch, "Guys, it's time to go."

"Sure thing, Case. Donnie, you explain the plan to him." Raph called to the turtle in purple.

"Ok, and you wake Mikey and Leo. And try to snap Sensei out of meditation." Donnie called back, making his way over to Casey, his reptilian body illuminated by the dim light that hung from the ceiling.

"Fine…" Raph gave a short bark-like laugh.

"Gently, Raph," Donnie hissed to his brother, knowing that Raph would grab any opportunity to irritate Leo. And the last thing any of them wanted was a fight between Leo and Raph when they were supposed to be fighting Shredder.

"Damn you, Donnie," Raph cursed under his breath, shaking his fists. He stood over a sleeping Mikey and nudged him gently with his foot, "Hey, vomit face, get up! We got a fight to go win!"

"Not now, Raph…" Mikey groaned.

"Come on, Mike, we have no choice in this." Raph hauled his youngest brother to his feet and was relieved to see that Mikey could walk by himself. The rest seemed to have done him the world of good. Raph pointed him in the direction of Donnie before heading over to where Leo was curled up asleep, clutching his stomach and twisting uncomfortably. Raph was planning on waking him up in the most unpleasant way he could think of, but when he saw the leader's discomfort he decided against it; Leo was not going to be in a good mood when he woke up, "c'mon, Leo. You gotta wake up now and help us fight the Shredder," Raph shook his brother gently, "it's your plan we're using so we'll need you to help us."

"Raph?" Leo got to his feet unsteadily, swaying a little. He looked worse than he had before he'd slept.

"You don't look too good, bro,"

"King of the obvious as always." Leo grumbled. Raph punched him playfully on the arm but wasn't quite prepared for the reaction. Leo stumbled and had to grab Raph so he didn't fall. Raph hadn't punched him hard so why was he struggling so much. He took a slow step forward and started making his way over to Donnie and Mikey who grabbed him as he began to slip.

"Leo, you can't do this." Donnie fussed over his brother.

"Mikey, you'll have to climb the beams with Raph." Leo said, completely ignoring Donnie.

"No probs, Leo. You'll be fine," Leo's little brother patted his brother's shell, the same comforting and friendly grin on his features that had often made the other three feel a lot more optimistic about their situations, "we'll beat the Shredder. It's that or we have to escape."

"Yeah, but the risk makes our skills all the more acute, right Leo?" Raph imitated his older brother from a fight they'd had a long time ago with Baxter Stockman's mousers.

"Sure, Raph, but risks don't always make you fight better. Sometimes it's the risk that can lose you the battle or even get you killed."

"See? You're feeling more like your old self again already!" Raph spread his arms in a joking manner, but there was also some sincerity in what he said. If Leo began to order them around or give lectures about how a ninja should behave and fight then he would forget about his illness for a while. Raph glanced quickly at Donnie and winked and Donnie knew instantly that it was his job to fight as badly as possible but without putting himself or his brothers at risk. That way Leo would insist on demonstrating what he should be doing and tell him what he was doing wrong. It wasn't a great plan, but it was the best they had.

**A/N: -** When I say **'they'** I mean Donnie, Raph and Mikey because if Leo knew the plan it would defeat the object of it…Leo is supposed to not know the plan so that when Donnie does stuff wrong in battle he genuinely thinks his brother's being thick and purposely tries to correct him thinking nerves must've blocked out proper fight tactics from his head.

Keep reviewing -


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: -** So now our heroes are fighting the Shredder…I don't think I need to say anything else here…  

 "Do you understand and accept the rules?" Shredder asked them as they all stood before him, Leo stood at the front as usual but with Raph close behind him in case he passed out or something, although Leo was still insisting that he could manage on his own. Of course, as soon as he'd said that he'd thrown up and Raph hadn't left his side since. Raph was sticking to the excuse that Donnie had told him to stay with Leo but Leo knew better. Raph was staying with him out of his own free will through deep concern for his elder brother. But, flattered as he was, Leo just wished that they would all just leave him alone and worry about Shredder and the battle.

"We understand." Leo answered shortly, snapping back to his senses.

"And do you also accept them?" Shredder asked, voice dripping with malice and sarcasm as he spoke to his enemies.

"Does it matter?" Leo sounded cool and collected as he always was when talking to someone as detestable as Shredder. It was his way of angering them; he didn't need violence. The tone of his voice always said more than the words he used.

"Not really, I'll kill you anyway."

"Then let's get down to it. First, you shall take on my Foot ninjas."

"Wait one moment, Shredder," Leo cut in, "your rules said nothing about anyone else fighting this battle for you. Not once did you mention back-up from your Foot ninjas. Not in any of you twenty-five rules for this battle. You said in rule twenty-one that you were to have three helpers of your choice as I have. Seeing as we do not have our Sensei and you are using him as a prize then three helpers is all you'll get. You already have our human friends captive." Leo turned Shredder's own rules around so they worked to the turtles' advantage. At least now they didn't have to worry about battling an entire army. But Leo wasn't finished, "but as we didn't have a choice about who we were in a team with then you shall not have the choice either."

"You're all brothers – you're a team anyway."

"Yes, but we still had no choice. So April O'Neill will be choosing who your team is as I do not expect you to let us or Casey Jones choose for you..."

"As my opponents, you shall choose. But only one of you shall choose. Which of you will it be?" Shredder asked. The turtles huddled together to make a decision.

"You do it, Leo. You're the leader and you know each unit's strength better than any of us…" Mikey laughed nervously.

"Is everyone ok with that?" Leo looked round at each of his brothers. They all nodded silently and Leo stepped forward.

"So, freak, who is to be on my team?"

"A Foot Elite of your choice, a Foot Ninja of your choice and a Foot Tech ninja."

"Very well. Hun, it seems, is to be disappointed." Shredder growled and chose himself a Foot ninja, a Foot Tech and a Foot Elite before returning with his team to face the turtles.

"Leo, why didn't you just pick three Foot ninjas?" Raph hissed in his brother's ear. Leo frowned at him.

"Because, Raph, that wouldn't work with rule seven; The Shredder's team must have the same capabilities and wide range of attacks as his opponents."

"How the hell do you remember the rules?" Raph snorted as he and Mikey fell back to prepare for the plan. Donnie smirked and saw Leo wink subtly at him.

"You made that rule up, didn't you?"

"Yip…Shredder needs to stand some sort of chance to keep his attention on us and not on Raph and Mikey." Leo grinned broadly at Donnie, who rolled his eyes upwards and gave a short chuckle, hardly believing that Leo would lie to his brothers like that. But even their fearless leader had a mischievous side and Donnie secretly wished he showed his more relaxed nature more often when they were practicing instead of playing the relentless motivator that pushed them to their limits…but that happening was about as likely as Mikey discussing the laws of physics without the word 'bogus' being involved at any point.

    "Hun, sound the gong." Shredder roared. Hun pounded his fist on a large metal gong and its low, clear note reverberated around the room, bouncing off the walls before fading away into nothing. The fight began.

    Leo and Donnie sprang forward, instantly concentrating their effort and skill on Shredder. They had to obscure his vision so that Raph and Mikey could beat the rest of Shredder's 'team' and then climb up into the roof unnoticed. Leo was growing tired quickly and finding it difficult to manage under the strain of a battle so ferocious that it was beginning to look as if they would lose. Donnie rapidly noted his brother's decreasing speed. His energy was draining out of him fast but the enthusiasm in his eyes remained the same. He looked as though he could drop down at any minute. Shredder seemed to sense this and momentarily disposed of Donnie by throwing him to the floor to focus his attentions on the weaker turtle. He grabbed Leo with one hand and held his wrist blades to the turtle's throat.

"Move one step closer and your precious leader will die a gruesome death," Shredder snarled venomously.

"No…you didn't say it was a fight to the death!"

"I would've thought that was obvious from the well-known fact that I've been trying to eliminate you for a very long time." Shredder's throaty laugh echoed round the room. Everyone had frozen. Raph was holding his Sais to the throat of the Foot ninja and his hand was trembling. Mikey looked round desperately for an idea to help his brother to escape the Shredder's grip…but Leo had just stopped struggling, or so it seemed. With a start, Mikey suddenly realised that Leo was being strangled by the Shredder. They had all been so caught up with looking at the blades that they hadn't noticed Shredder's grip tightening round Leo's throat.

"No…" Donnie whispered, throwing himself forward and knocking the Shredder off balance so he dropped Leo. Shredder just got to his feet and chuckled mirthlessly.

"You fool," he spat, "did you really think I was going to kill him? That would spoil the object of the game; although once I have killed the three prizes then he will be the first of you four freaks to go. He's caused me more trouble than he's worth."

"You'll never beat us, Shredder, and you can't kill Casey, April and Splinter until you have got through us…have you forgotten your own rules? Rule one – you cannot kill the prizes until your prime opponents are dead." Raph's lips twisted into a cruel sneer. Mikey laughed heartily.

"How embarrassing…you forgot your own rules!" he sniggered from where he was now sat by Leo.

"You really are all metal…" Leo whispered, rubbing his sore throat. His eyes were wide as he strained to get his breath back. Mikey was sat beside him, cross-legged as if they were simply sat in the dojo. Why Mikey had sat down was a mystery to Leo but he was grateful to his little brother all the same.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Shredder demanded, striding over to stand above Leo and Mikey.

"Simply that you are _all_ metal…which must be difficult…how do you think with a head of metal?"

"Yeah, dude," Mikey added picking up on the joke, "and it must be pretty impossible to swim, don't ya think? You know, being metal and all."

"Idiots! Morons! Why do you play foolish games with me? The rules are no longer in place. You have five minutes to defeat me before I begin killing your friends. I will kill one every five minutes after that."

"Screw the rules, huh?" Raph drawled, sounding slightly drunk, "that works for me." He plunged his Sais into the throat of the terrified Foot ninja. Shredder roared and Leo and Mikey had to roll opposite ways to avoid the body slam the Shredder attempted.

"Guys, we're in for the fight of our lives!" Leo exclaimed.

"Ironic that you should say that both the first and last times we fight him," Raph called to his brother. He was engaged in heated combat with the Foot Tech ninja and was having a few problems making him visible. However, one he had managed it the fight was as good as his. Leo and Mikey were at work on the Foot Elite ninja while Donnie was dodging blow after blow from the Shredder. Raph joined him, deciding that Mikey and Leo would finish the Elite ninja easily enough between them. He was right and soon they were all working at Shredder – and they had three minutes left before April was to be killed. The plan was ruined and now the rest of the Foot wanted to join in with the fighting and help their master. They were stopped only by Shredder's command.

"I will take them on my own. They shall never defeat me in three minutes!" Shredder roared.

"Don't be so sure, Shred-head," Leo growled.

"So, your fearless leader seems to have regained his spark. Perhaps a one-to-one challenge is in order…"

"You can't do that!" Raph twirled his Sais and stepped in front of Leo but his brother pushed him gently aside.

"Actually, he can. Rule seventeen: If the Shredder wishes to have a one-to-one face off with a specific member of the opposing team then he must challenge him using the appropriate words and the challenge must be accepted." Leo's voice was soft and there was a dreamy look on his face as he thought up a way around the Shredder's challenge.

"You are forgetting that we have discarded the rules in this fight but if you wish for a formal challenge then so be it. I, Oroku Saki, challenge you, Leonardo, to a fight to the death. But as I am feeling generous you may have one member of your team to help you should you need it."

"Oh, how generous," Raph muttered.

"Shut up, Raph. I accept your challenge and I choose Donatello as my partner," Leo stepped forward. Donnie's eyes widened and he shot a worried glance at his brother. He had expected Leo to pick Raphael but he was shocked to be chosen. Leo flashed him a small and re-assuring smile and whispered something brief in Raph's ear. Raph nodded uncertainly, not a good thing for Raph – uncertainty was not a normal personality trait which Raph displayed.

"Step forward, Leonardo and Donatello." Shredder ordered. Donnie and Leo moved forward so they were only two feet away from the Shredder, "I will change my deal - you have ten minutes before I kill all three of your friends…at the same time with no questions asked."

"Very well," Leo took a deep breath and he and Donnie shared one last brief glance which wished each other good luck. They began to circle the Shredder and Shredder finally lunged for Donnie, bladed hand outstretched and ready to slice clean through Donnie's neck. Leo knew Donnie would not have time to react and dropped to the floor, sweeping with his left foot to knock the Shredder off balance as he aimed for Donnie. Shredder fell in a crash of metal but jumped to his feet quickly.

"Thanks, bro," Donnie inclined his head to Leo.

"Anytime, but just keep a little more alert from the beginning next time. And don't even think about trying to keep me alert by doing things wrong. Worry about yourself in this battle, Donnie, and we'll stand a lot more of a chance against this metal head. We only have ten minutes." Leo gave his brother a hurried lecture as he ducked several blows form Shredder, who was furious that they had survived an entire thirty seconds of heated combat with him.

    Beside Raph, Mikey was whimpering and practically wetting himself as he shifted his weight back and forth on his feet. Raph rolled his eyes and hit Mikey round the head.

"Acting like a complete dork won't get us anywhere. We have to continue with the plan. It's our only chance of getting April, Casey and Splinter out of here alive; there's no way Don and Leo can defeat Shredder in less that ten minutes."

"Ok, but when do we do it?"

"When Leo gives me the signal. He has to knock Shredder to the floor and leap over him to distract him. That's when we go for it. The Foot are all too intrigued by the battle to notice our disappearance."

"Got it…" Mikey looked to the floor where Leo had just jumped over Shredder and kicked him in the face, "wait a minute, wasn't that the signal?"

"Yes! Let's go!" Raph leapt up into the beams, swinging from them like a monkey, closely followed by Mikey who was also making convincing monkey sound effects but only loud enough for Raph to hear, "I think you've finally found your true calling, Mikey. Monkey-turtle!" Raph joked to his brother.

"Hey, was that an insult?"

"No, it was a compliment."

"Oh, ok…thanks, dude." Mikey grinned at his brother. They scrambled on to the top of one of the beams above their friends.

"Mike – you're the lighter of the two of us so I'll hold onto your feet and swing you down so you can grab the others and I'll pull ya back up." Raph explained, pointing down to where Mikey would soon be dangling.

"Ok, so we go now?"

"Yes, we go now!"

**A/N: -** So will the plan work? Read the next chapter to find out! It seems that Shredder is not as intelligent as he makes out to be – forgetting his own rules and all – but will the turtles be able to force a victory out of what could turn into a deadly defeat? Just do me one favour before you leave this page…review please!


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: -** Here's the next chapter when you will find out if the turtles' plan works. Please review after reading and I will stay a happy author and I will keep writing…why am I saying that? I'm gonna keep writing anyway 'cause I have to start what I finish but reviews are always good!!!!

Donnie and Leo were starting to struggle. Both were having their separate problems. Leo was still suffering due to the illness while Donnie was struggling to stay alert through concern for Leo and also for Mikey and Raph. The risks they were taking were huge and Donnie didn't like to think of what would happen if someone spotted them. There was no way they could get all three 'prizes' to safety without being spotted. Donnie knew what he had to do; he and Leo would have to push their pride and honour aside and make a break for escape so that all of the warriors in the room would be distracted.

"Donnie, break for it!" Leo yelled to his brother. Donnie was impressed; he'd actually thought up the same plan as Leo and, in his opinion, that was a good thing. He leapt towards the large wooden door and began pulling at it while Leo fought off the Foot ninjas that were now attacking them. Between them, the two turtles eventually managed to open the door. With one last glance at Raph and Mikey, they clambered up the side of the building and onto the gently sloping roof. Their opponents followed them and a battle ensued. Throwing off ninja after ninja, Donnie and Leo gradually worked the enemies down until there was only about half left. That was when two more reptilian forms leapt onto the roof to join the fight. Raph and Mikey fought their way through to their exhausted brothers.

"You guys need help?" Raph asked, keeping his voice casual as he spoke to Leo.

"A little; where are the others?"

"Safe. Don't worry so much, Leo. Me and Mikey have everything under control."

"Someone should've stayed with them."

"Nah, Casey had a baseball bat with him so I'd say they can handle it." Raph shrugged, unconcerned.

"Fine," Leo jumped out of the way of a Foot ninja before swinging round and kicking out at the ninja sending him flying off the roof and plummeting to his death. His piercing shriek echoed and sent a shudder through all those present.

Shredder crept up the back of the building. They would have to spring on the turtles by surprise. Hun was going to need to stay in the building as he would break the roof if he stood on it for it was not built to sustain such weight. Shredder reached the roof and began sneaking through the shadows unnoticed.

At the same time, out of the corner of his eye, Leo saw a glimmer of metal. It seemed that Mikey had seen it too as he stifled a small scream and sprinted over to Leo and Raph. Donnie frowned but followed his younger brother in case there was something wrong, although with Mikey it was probably just the fact that he'd broken his Nunchuks and thought he was going to get in trouble and would rather endure a lecture from Leo than from Splinter. That had only ever happened once but Mikey did generally prefer receiving lectures from his older brother because he couldn't punish Mikey so severely and Mikey got away with more. Not a lot more…but more all the same.

"Leo, did you see that?" Mikey was jittery, "I think the Shred-head's up here!"

"No kidding, Mike. We have to get out of here, and fast!" Leo ordered. The four brothers began scrambling back down the side of the building with Raph leading the way to where Splinter, April and Casey were waiting for them. Leo and Mikey went with April and Casey on a direct route back to the lair as they would not be able to stand much more of the fighting. Leo's breathing was slowly becoming harder for him and Mikey was having problems walking in a straight line. Raph, Donnie and Splinter went on a different route to get back to make sure they weren't followed. Shredder was too busy checking with Hun whether the turtles had passed through the building and the Foot ninjas were either dead on the ground, injured or searching in all the wrong places. So by the time they were halfway back to the battle shell the group had met up again. They were collecting the battle shell because they needed a way to cover ground quickly and with two of their number still suffering from the poison it was vital to find a way to let them recover peacefully and without disturbance.

"Come on, hurry, everybody in," April helped Casey in and he, in turn, helped Leo who helped Mikey and so on and so forth. The seven of them shut the door at the back of the Battle Shell and crouched down, April and Casey sat together and sharing a blanket. Mikey suspected they were holding hands underneath it but he, for once, didn't comment.

"Do you think we should get going then?" Donnie asked, yawning hugely and setting off a chain of yawns which went round the circle.

"Yawning is so infectious!" Mikey rubbed his eyes, "I'm tired and I don't feel too good. I think I feel almost as bad as Leo looks."

"Yeah, and that's saying something," Raph muttered from where he was sat between Mikey and Leo. Mikey sniggered and Leo elbowed Raph but no effort went into it and it just cracked Mikey up even more.

"Stop making me laugh…it hurts…" he gasped.

"We're not trying to make you laugh, Mike." Raph sighed, "Leo just can't get to grips with the fact that he won't be up to much fearless leading for a few days."

"I'll be fine by the time we fight Shredder again," Leo scowled.

"Ha! You could barely walk back there, Leo, and I had to help you. How did that feel? To be accepting help from _me_?!" Raph nudged his brother but got no response. In the space of a few seconds, Leo had completely passed out, "Am I that boring to listen to?"

"Nah…well, yeah…but I think Leo just passed out from the poison. But if you keep talking then I might just follow his example!" Mikey joked, but was smacked round the head by Raph, "ow, Raphy, that wasn't very nice." Mikey sniffed, rubbing his head.

"I know."

"I'm going to sleep." Mikey stated.

"You do that. It'll give us some peace and quiet. None of your bad jokes and none of Leo's lectures. Excellent…" Raph trailed off when he caught Splinter giving him a scolding glare, "that'll be ten flips when I get the chance then?" Raph groaned.

"Yes, Raphael, it will be ten flips. You have laughed at your brothers' expense for too long, however amusing you and Mr. Jones may find it."

"Sorry, Sensei."

"Yeah, sorry Splinter," Casey said guiltily, biting his lip.

"Donatello," Splinter ignored the apologies and turned to his second youngest son, "take us to somewhere where we can be safe."

"I know just the place, Sensei." Donnie beamed and sat in the driver's seat, cracking his knuckles and stretching before starting the Battle Shell and jerking them into motion at a high speed. Donnie knew where to take them. They would go to the island where they had defeated the Garbage-man and had left their homeless friends. No-one would think to look for them there. He pressed down on the accelerator and they were soon by the docks. He hid the Battle Shell a few miles away; they would have to leave it somewhere that would mislead Shredder if it was found.

Piling out of the Battle Shell, they began to walk towards the docks. It was a three mile walk and they had to go slowly for Leo as he was feeling groggy and Mikey conveniently named the regular breaks 'vomit stops'. This was not an easy journey for any of them.

"Are we there yet?" Mikey groaned, "My feet are killing me."

"Better your feet than Shredder," Raph mumbled.

"Yeah, I guess so, but when can we stop?"

"We stopped just five minutes ago," Donnie said, exasperated.

"I know but that wasn't really a rest; it was a vomit stop."

"Thanks for the reminder, Mike," Leo glared at his brother.

"Mikey, listen," April led a hand on his shell. Raph snorted, "shut up, Raph. Mikey, we can't just stop for a rest. We stop only when it's necessary or we'll never get to the island before Shredder realises what's going on."

"I'm sorry, April. I just hate all this walking."

"We all hate all this walking except Mr. Perfect over there…"

"That's not fair, Raph!"

"It's just the truth – hell, you're throwing up who knows what and you still vote to walk. We could have stayed in the Battle Shell."

"I voted to walk because then we could get fresh air and mislead Shredder at the same time. You're just ticked off because you didn't get your own way."

"Now who's being unfair?" Raph smirked.

"Oh, shut up Raph…" Leo moaned as he pushed away Donnie's support and squared up to his brother in red.

"You gonna fight me? You wanna fight? 'Cause I'll fight you with pleasure and kick your tail with even more!"

"My sons that is enough." Splinter stepped between them, "Leonardo, you are in no state to fight. You should know better. And as for you, Raphael, I am shocked that you would challenge your brother to a fight when you know he is not up to it."

"It's his fault for starting the argument!" Raph retorted.

"Actually, Raph, you started the argument," Donnie pointed out timidly, not wanting to get on the wrong side of Raph but also not wanting to let Leo take the blame for the argument although Splinter would know the truth anyway.

"Argh, you guys are all driving me crazy! I'm going ahead." Raph stormed off and was quickly out of sight.

"We'd better follow him." Donnie sighed, "we need to get moving."

Raph slowed his pace after about a mile. There was only about half a mile left to the docks and then a brief swim. Then he would be able to see their homeless friends again. And Raph had to admit he was curious to see how they had got on since living on the island. The only problem was going to be the same problem that affected anyone they were closely linked to; all who dwelt on that island would be in danger. He knew the Professor wouldn't care but maybe there would be new people living there as well and Raph didn't want to cause trouble. But at the moment his mind was still fixed on his brothers. _I know I'm right. They just don't understand me. Well, Casey does but he didn't exactly stick up for me and my side of the argument back there. He could've at least chased after me…probably too afraid. And then there's Leo. Mr. Perfect even when he's under the effects of poison. And why the hell did Donnie interfere – he knew Splinter would believe Leo even if it was Leo's fault so why the hell did he do that? And Mikey – the best of the lot at the moment except for the constant moaning and groaning about how his feet hurt or how he feels sick. He's just taking advantage of the fact that he's still suffering from the poison. Bluddy great for him but if I'd done that then no-one would've believed me Maybe if I disappeared; gave them a scare…._

_What am I thinking?_

_ That's crazy! But I guess crazy times call for crazy measures…just not that crazy. I'll keep away from them on the island and hide until they get frantic. That way I'm still safe and they're still safe and no-one has to get hurt._ Raph smiled to himself. It was a good plan and he couldn't help wondering if they'd care when they couldn't find him. He'd just disappear for a day and then magically turn up in a place where they were bound to look and be trapped by some rubbish or something so they never found out the truth of what he'd really been doing. He had been walking while thinking and had reached the docks. The moonlight was reflecting off the water making it sparkle like an underwater heaven. He dived in, the cold water rushing over his body and re-awakening his weary body and mind, and swam swiftly and silently towards the island.

Raph surfaced and looked round, checking the cost was clear before stepping back onto dry land. Heading towards the centre of it he heard voices singing and laughing. He climbed a rubbish heap and peered over the top. Sure enough, there were all their homeless friends dancing round a large bonfire. Their numbers had increased and there were about ten new people who Raph had never seen or spoken to before. He half ran and half slid down the other side of the rubbish heap he was hiding behind until he reached the ground. The singing stopped as people noticed the giant turtle walking towards them. There was a low murmur passing through the homeless. Raph couldn't hear exactly what they were saying but it was probably something along the lines of 'send for the Professor' or 'quick, hide the children'. Feeling uncomfortable, Raph decided to speak up.

"Please, I'm a friend. My brothers will be here within the hour. I need to speak with the Professor."

"Hang on – you're one of those turtle dudes that used to bring us the blankets and clothes!" one homeless man spoke up, pointing excitedly at Raphael.

"Raphael, how good to see you," a deep, jolly voice chuckled. The Professor was pushing through the crowds to greet Raph and shook his hand heartily, "but where are your brothers?"

"They're on their way."

"Why are they not here with you now?"

"I had a fight with Leo and I walked off ahead. And Leo and Mikey are still having a few…problems…"

"Problems?"

"I'll need to explain it somewhere quieter although Donnie would probably explain it better. I'm gonna go for a walk round the island if that's ok."

"Perfectly fine, Raphael, perfectly fine. Do ask if you need anything specific and we will do our very best to accommodate to your needs."

"Thanks, Professor."

"Not at all, not at all. I'll see you later for right now I have a theory to discuss with my friends and I'm sure they will be curious about you. I shall also need to warn them about your brothers or I'm afraid some of them might react rather less pleasantly than we'd like."

"Ok, I'll see you later, Professor." Raph waved as he walked off. Now he had to find a decent hiding place.

"So how do you propose we cross that then, Donnie?" Mikey asked.

"I'm not entirely sure. We can't swim across – well, I could but you and Leo couldn't and neither could April, Casey or Master Splinter. I wonder if there's a boat around here somewhere…" Donnie began scouting round to find some mode of transport that they could use to cross the water to get to the island.

"Would that do, Donnie?" Leo asked, pointing at a small boat.

"It's perfect and it looks abandoned. I'll take April, Casey and Sensei across and come back for you and Mikey. Then we can find Raph and our friends."

"Great."

"GUYS," Donnie called to the others.

"YEAH, DUDE?" Mikey shouted back.

"WE GOT A BOAT!" Donnie yelled. The others all expressed their relief in their own different styles, Mikey's being the most unusual as he leaned over and threw up over the side of the dock into the water. Then they all walked over to where Donnie and Leo were stood. April, Casey and Splinter boarded the boat and Mikey and Leo found somewhere to hide and wait for Donnie's return.

"You think they'll be ok?" April asked, glancing back at Leo and Mike.

"They'll be fine. You saw the battle against Shredder. If they could manage that while they were ill then I'm sure they could manage to find some means of escape if they were ambushed now." Donnie replied.

"If you're sure…" April trailed off. They were already nearing the island and Donnie was obviously not going to say anything else.

Upon reaching the island, all except Donnie got off the boat and stood on the bank to wait for Donnie's return. Donnie saluted them as he steered the boat back in the direction of the docks. He couldn't see Leo and Mikey anymore which, he assumed, meant they had found somewhere to hide. But then he saw the Foot ninjas. There were about ten of them combing the area.

"Oh no…" Donnie whispered to himself. He got halfway back to the docks and then stopped the boat and dropped the anchor. There was a net in the back of the boat and he threw it over the side and not a moment too soon.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" a Foot ninja yelled over to him.

"FISHING," Donnie faked a deep, husky voice for them. The Foot didn't push it further as they saw the net over the side. They just disappeared as they heard a roar from Shredder. _He's found the __Battle__ Shell,_ Donnie thought happily but another thought still pushed at him, _but has he found my brothers?_

"Nicely done, dude," Mikey laughed as he climbed onto the boat, "you dropped the anchor so we could climb the rope and all. You even left me a net to get tangle up in!"

"Mikey, where's Leo?"

"Here, Don," Leo was clinging to the anchor's rope and looking half dead.

"At least you're both safe. If you let Leo on the boat first then we can untangle you, Mike, ok?"

"Yeah, sure," Mikey shrugged. Leo climbed into the boat with a little help from Donnie and then both set about pulling Mikey aboard so that they could disentangle him from the net. Thankfully the Foot had disappeared so no-one had seen Leo and Mikey getting on the boat. Donnie pulled up the anchor and they turned round to go to the island.

"What was that about?" Casey asked them as they stepped ashore and tied up the boat.

"The Foot ninjas were sneaking around but left before Leo and Mikey got in the boat because Shredder found the Battle Shell." Donnie explained.

"But how do we know he'll fall for it."

"I left a few other clues that none of you knew about."

"Like what, my son?" Splinter inquired, raising a furry eyebrow.

"Let's just say that Shredder is going on a wild turtle chase to the other end of New York and back – I left a map of that part of the city in the Battle Shell and also a diagram of an alternative method of transport along with the address of an abandoned warehouse to make him think that's where we're keeping it. There's also a letter from a guy named Laurence who has apparently sold a place on the other side of New York to Casey. So Shredder is going to think we're staying there – but what he doesn't realise is that the place he's going to doesn't actually exist."

"He'll eventually realise that it was all a hoax," Leo sighed, "We'll have to keep him off our scent. Once he realises then we will be forced to move off again."

"I know, but for now let's just rest up and look for Raphael."

**A/N: -** Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear! Raph has run off again and this really isn't a good time to be pulling foolish stunts to worry those who love you most when you're all locked in a deadly battle for survival in which it seems you are always on the defence!


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: -** Next chapter ready to roll – the chapter endings are less dramatic at the moment but every turtle deserves a break now and again! Ok, enough from me and read, read, read!

"And you're sure he was here?" Leo frowned.

"Yes, he said he was going for a look around." The Professor answered, looking at each of his friends in turn.

"We have to find him," Leo made to leave the shack in which they were all sat but was stopped by Splinter.

"No, Leonardo. Donatello, Mr. Jones and Miss O'Neill, if she wishes, will go and search for Raphael. You and Michelangelo are in no fit state to leave here for the moment."

"But Sensei----"

"No. Donatello you will search one area while Mr. Jones and Miss O'Neill search another. Keep in contact with each other and come back immediately if you find Raphael or anything indicating that he is no longer on the island."

"Yes, Master Splinter." Donnie bowed and left with April and Casey, leaving Splinter, Leo and Mikey to explain what had brought them to the island to the Professor.

"Raph? Raphael?" April looked behind a collapsed shack on the edge of the island.

"RAPH, YOU BOZO - GET YOUR STINKING GREEN BUTT OUT HERE NOW!" Casey bellowed at the top of his voice.

"Casey, you could be a bit more polite."

"Politeness never got anyone anywhere when you're dealing with Raphael."

"Honestly," April sighed, following Casey to search a rubbish pile in case Raph was playing some stupid game. That was the most likely explanation for his 'disappearance'. He was probably seeing if a search party would be sent out to look for him. That was what April thought was happening and she knew Casey had the same suspicions. She also suspected that Splinter knew it was a stupid stunt because otherwise he would've had everyone out looking for his second oldest son. But it still didn't stop her being concerned for Raphael. She knew him better than the other turtles and Casey and Raph were very close friends. She caught a glimpse of Donnie a few hundred yards away from where she and Casey were.

"Any sign of him?" Donnie called.

"No…think we should turn in? It's getting too dark to search."

"You guys go in and I'll be there in a minute." Casey said with a wave of his hand. Donnie and April nodded and left the area. They would search again tomorrow. Casey, however, thought that he'd seen a flash of red behind a large rubbish pile. He waited until April and Donnie were gone and then he leant on an abandoned car and folded his arms, "I know you're there, Raph." He said simply.

"Damn." Raph stated bluntly as he emerged, brushing a banana skin off his left arm as he came to stand by Casey.

"Why the hell are you hiding?"

"To see if people cared."

"You idiot, of course people care! Everyone's just too used to your stunts so they're not all out looking."

"I'm not coming back. They'll have to find me."

"I'll tell them where you are." Casey retorted.

"You do that and I kick your thick skull into the ground."

"Raph…"

"No, Casey. I am not coming back. I want to see if people really care and search for me tomorrow."

"And if they don't?"

"I dunno – I'll just wait." Raph walked away from Casey but turned back and called over his shoulder, "and Casey? Don't tell them you've seen me. I'm not coming back until I receive an apology."

"An apology for what?! You started that fight, Raph, not Leo." Casey was indignant. Raph just couldn't admit he was wrong.

"I just want Splinter and the others to stop treating me like garbage. Splinter thinks this is another of my stupid stunts, Leo couldn't care less and Mikey is just too damn wrapped up in staying ill so he gets it all easy."

"Splinter sent out the search party and this _is _another of your stupid stunts, Raph. Leo does care and Mikey has been throwing up. Splinter stayed with them and wouldn't let them search. That's why they weren't out looking, not because they don't care. Now come back you selfish asshole."

"Not yet, and I ain't an asshole."

"Why not? And yes you are."

"Because I need to clear my head. Tell the others you found me and that I'll be back by tomorrow lunchtime." Raph carried on walking and Casey watched silently until he'd rounded the corner and then went back to the shack. He admired Raph but this was taking things too far. At least he'd managed to get some sense into Raph's head and talked his way out of getting his skull kicked into the ground.

"You ok, Casey?" April greeted him.

"Did you find Raph?" Donnie asked.

"Yeah and he says he'll be back by tomorrow lunchtime – he just needs to clear his head for a bit. He thought no-one cared and that everyone was turning against him."

"Huh, typical Raphael," Leo snorted, "he only thinks of himself."

"Yeah, but you owe me. I talked him out of staying there until he gets an apology from you because that's what he was gonna do."

"He wanted me to apologise to _him_?"

"Yep, and he was ticked off big time – he threatened to kick my skull into the ground."

"You didn't seriously believe he would do that, did you?" Mikey chortled.

"Well he looked pretty serious to me."

"He makes idle threats like that but he only ever follows it through if he's got an audience to watch him…unless he's with Leo. They fight with and without an audience."

"Hey!" Leo looked up at Donnie and scowled, "Mikey's the one he threatens most and he's carried through more threats on Mikey than on me."

"Only because you wouldn't give me the chance to carry them through – you just snitch to Sensei." Raph was standing in the doorway but by the expression on his face they could tell he was just joking around.

"We thought you weren't going to be back until tomorrow…you needed to clear your head or something." Mikey said, confused.

"Yeah, well there obviously ain't much in my head to clear then is there?" Raph sat down next to Donnie. Everyone was keeping a little distance between themselves and Mikey and Leo. Donnie had said it was nothing personal but they just didn't really feel like being covered in sick. Mikey had pretended to be offended and asked what was wrong with the occasional vomit shower but no-one had bothered to answer him.

They awoke the next morning to the sound of knocking on the door of the shack they had slept in.

"My friends, will you be helping to make breakfast?"

"Yeah," Raph agreed.

"Sure," Donnie added.

"Why not?" Leo yawned.

"No thank-you, I'll just eat it."

"MIKEY!" three other voices chorused. April and Casey had been up for a while and Splinter was meditating. The four turtles had only just been awoken and already Mikey was driving them mad.

"Sorry, dudes, but it was worth a try." Mikey stretched and got up, blinking to clear his sight, "and I'm really hungry."

"You can have mine, Mikey," Leo said, receiving a joyful slap on the shell in return for giving Mikey an offer of extra food.

"Thanks, Leo," Mikey ran out of the door, "let's get started!"

"You are not eating, Leonardo?" it was more of a statement than a question.

"No, Master Splinter, I don't think it would be a particularly good idea."

"A wise decision. Do you wish to stay here?"

"No, I will help make the food but I'll just give mine to Mikey."

"Michelangelo will be hyperactive for the rest of the day…if he manages to keep the food down."

"That won't be a problem, Sensei. The whole group needs a lift at the minute and if Mikey's hyper then at least he'll be able to cheer everyone up for a bit."

"Now you go and get some fresh air."

"You're not coming?"

"I need to meditate further on what we are to do next. From now on we will act only with a sufficient amount of planning."

"Yes, Master Splinter."

"Now go, Leonardo, and please do not allow your brothers to wander off around the island. I want you all where I can keep track of you." Splinter's soft voice trailed off and Leo left the shack to join his brother. He found all three brothers already pigging out on the food. It was all leftovers that people had thrown out or else it was something that had been found unopened in any abandoned vehicles or in the Garbage-man's private stash. They rarely went into that stash because they preferred to save it for special occasions like birthdays and Christmas. However, today was an exception due to the fact that there were visitors on the island. And these visitors were incredibly hungry.

"So, Raph, did you enjoy breakfast."

"I did until you starting taking stuff off my plate when I wasn't looking."

"He took it off your plate as well? And if Leo let Mikey have his…"

"He's had the equivalent of three breakfasts! Mike, you are a pig!" Raph lunged at his brother, tackling him to the ground.

"Ow, Raph, not a good idea! Raph! Get off me! I think I'm gonna----"

"YUCK! Mikey that was gross!" Raph waved a hand in front of his face in an attempt to waft away the smell.

"Sorry – I did warn you."

"He's right, Raph, he did warn you about five seconds before it happened. We managed to get far enough away," Leo looked sympathetically towards Raph from where he and Donnie were stood a few metres back.

"Damn you, Michelangelo," Raph muttered angrily, "I'm going for a walk."

"No you're not." Leo stepped into his brother's way and their faces were mere inches apart, "Sensei wants us all where he can keep track of us."

"Hell, the island ain't that big!"

"But it's big enough. Everyone is to stay in this central area, understood? Everyone?" Leo looked at his two youngest brothers for support.

"You got it, boss," Mikey saluted and winked.

"Sure, I want to listen to the Professor's lectures anyway." Donnie shrugged and walked off. Raph tensed and tried to move past Leo but his brother blocked his path once again.

"Understood, Raph? You are not to leave this central area."

"Fine, fine, I got it, your majesty." He mock bowed to his brother before shoving him out of the way and stomping off in the direction of the wire fence, where he relieved some of his anger by slamming his fists into the fence and kicked repeatedly at the wire. He then drew out his Sais and used them to rip a gaping hole in the wire. Leo sighed and watched from a distance; maybe he'd approach his brother later when he'd had time to cool down after that little outburst. To approach him instantly would only result in yet another fight and, if he was being honest, Leo was getting quite sick of the fights which were becoming more and more frequent. It was enough to drive anyone insane and Leo felt like he was always teetering on the edge of a nervous breakdown but the only thing actually breaking was his heart. It broke his heart to know that their team was falling apart and that Shredder defeated them every time they battled and he was finding new methods each time to throw them and make his life easier.

"Lunch is served, dudes!" Mikey yelled to the rest of the camp. He'd offered to help make it in return for an extra helping of the cabbage and potato soup they were eating. Leo watched, his stomach beginning to grumble, and he eventually gave in to the smell of something other than vomit. He went to sit beside Mikey, having thought of a way to lighten the mood.

"Hey, Mikey, look over there – a massive pizza from the Garbage-man's secret stash!"

"Where?" Mikey looked round. Leo snatched the bread from his plate and took a large bite of it, "I can't see a pizza. Hey, who stole---- Leo, give it back!"

"Too late, I've eaten it." Leo replied coolly. The rest of the camp was in hysterics. Michelangelo, food thief extraordinaire, had just been caught out by his own brother using his own trick.

"That was a dirty trick – no-one likes their food being stolen."

"Then why don't you stop taking other peoples' food?"

"Um, yeah, about that…"

"My point is made."

"Ok, but can I have some more bread?"

"Did Raph and Donnie get more breakfast?"

"Point taken. Now can I have my bread back? I promise never to take anyone's food again!"

"And I'm supposed to believe that because…?" Leo ventured for the answer.

"Because I'm your brother and you'd do anything just to make me happy and make sure that I was ok after the terrible ordeal with the poison…" Mikey fluttered his eyelashes at Leo, who shook his head in disgust and amusement.

"Not what I was thinking, Mikey…and I'm the one having problems with the poison, not you!"

"Oh, trust you to take all the pity! Ow!" Mikey rubbed the back of his head realising that Leo had hit him.

"You'll wait until tea-time for food and you won't take anyone else's food and you will not try and get out of helping to scavenge for useful artifacts in the garbage by saying your ill because I'm helping and I'm ill as well!" Leo pulled his brother to his feet and dragged him off to a rubbish pile to begin sifting through it.

"Stupid brother…" Mikey mumbled, not expecting Leo to hear.

"What was that, Michelangelo?" Leo asked, his voice sounding uncannily like that of a school teacher scolding a pupil for making a rude and unsuitable comment.

"I said 'stupid brother' but I was referring to Raphael, thank you very much Mr. Leonardo, sir!"

"You were talking about me but because I'm in a good mood I'm going to let you off without a lecture, just this once."

"Your generosity astounds me." Mikey said flatly.

"Hey! Raph would be jumping round like an insane maniac if I told him he wasn't going to get a lecture!"

"Raph's an insane maniac anyway."

"I heard that, you goofball!" Raph's head popped up from the other side of the rubbish pile and he threw a discarded drinks can at Mikey hitting him on the top of the head.

"Why does everyone pick on me?"

"I don't pick on you, Mikey," Donnie offered, also joining his brothers to help them sift through the city's unwanted treasures.

"Whatever – so what exactly are we looking for?"

"Anything that the homeless people can get some money for or anything they can use to improve life on the island." Raph said, throwing another drinks can at his brother in orange and this time hitting him square in the chest.

"Ok, I got it. This has got to be the most fun we've had since watching Casey and Raph having a verbal bashing match."

"Yeah, what I wouldn't give to go back and just have one day where we didn't fear for our lives or have any sort of problems."

"I know what you mean, Raph, but it's just not possible to do that." Leo sat down miserably, rubbing his stomach and wincing slightly.

"What is it, bro?"

"I'm not sure. I guess it's just because I'm not used to eating and I had Mikey's bread."

"Yeah, _my_ bread from _my _lunch!" Mikey stressed the word 'my' to show that he was serious…but it didn't work. Raph had carefully scrambled round to the same side of the rubbish heap and Mikey and Leo and had sat next to the leader.

"You sure you're ok?"

"I'm fine. It's all just after effects of the poison."

"_All_ just after effects? What do you mean by that?"

"I've just got a headache, that's all. It's no big deal."

"Look, Leo. If you're recovering from this then you need to rest up and not go round aggravating whatever after effects you're experiencing."

"Once again, the impossible becomes reality…" Donnie sighed.

"…Raph and caring go together in a sentence. What is this world coming to?" Mikey finished, looking up to the sky.

"Shut your gobs, you two! It's just because I don't want to risk losing against Shredder again, and if we're a brother down then we don't stand a chance." Raph threw a small heap of rubbish at his brothers. Most of it hit Mikey, as intended, but some brushed over Donnie.

"What?! You only got me!"

"I know; call it payback for the sewage incident. I can still smell it sometimes if I'm in a small space on my own or with Leo." Raph growled, satisfied with his revenge. Mikey wiped all the rubbish off of himself with some help from Donnie and then he spotted a plank of wood half buried in the rubbish. He now had two choices: - Go garbage surfing (he'd never had a proper try at that on their last visit) or chase madly after Raph with it and frighten him into apologising for throwing rubbish at him. It was a tough decision and Mikey weighed up the consequences: - broken bones if he surfed wrong or landed at and angle or lectures from Donnie, Leo and Splinter for chasing Raph. After that, it was obvious that one choice had won hands down…

**A/N: -**Any guesses as to which option Mikey will choose? Both are pretty evenly weighed out when it comes to advantages and disadvantages but what do _you_ think? Make your mind up before the next chapter and then see if you're right…


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: -** This is quite a long chapter and I hope you all like it. I have upped the stakes for the Turtles in this chapter and they really are going to face a lot more problems now than I've ever made them face before. I hope they're ready for it!

"YEAH! WHOOOO!" Mikey yelled, lungs practically bursting, as he sped down the humungous heap of garbage. He was using his plank of wood as a surfboard and was dusty cloud was being kicked up behind him as he skidded, jumped and wove over and around every obstacle in his way until he reached the bottom and flipped up the wood and caught it in his right hand. His three brothers had taken a break from treasure seeking to watch and were clapping and cheering their younger brother as he took his bows and climbed back up the pile of trash to join them again.

"Have fun?" Raph asked.

"That so totally rocked, dude!" was Mikey's reply.

"Sure it did, Mike. So now you've had you fun you can get back to work, can't you?" Leo clapped his brother on the shell and grinned at Mikey's disappointed face.

"Sure you dudes don't want a go?" Mike offered, looking for any excuse not to work.

"We're sure, Mike…you're the surfer dude of this family." Donnie laughed.

"Are you guys coming?" April called up to them.

"Coming where?"

"To help decorate the shack. We've been given it as a gift for helping the homeless people and giving them more entertainment than they've had in a long time. They said it was also a late thank-you present for defeating the Garbage-man."

"Awesome!" Mikey used the plank of wood and surfed down to meet April but narrowly missing crashing into her as he did so. His brothers followed, but walked instead of surfed, and the five of them raced each other back to the shack. Raph would've won had Donnie, Mikey and Leo not bundled him last minute and unintentionally tripped April up in the process so they were all in a knot on the floor. April disentangled herself, giggling as she watched the brothers fight over who had one as the knot of turtles got over the finish line.

"My sons - stop this foolish nonsense this instance and get to work."

"Yes, Master Splinter," Leo pulled himself free of the knot he was tangled up in but was pulled back down with a thump when Mikey grabbed his foot.

"Heh heh, you shall not be the first to stand, my brother." Mikey said, being cut off when Leo hit him round the head and stood up again. Donnie was the next to free himself leaving Raph and Mikey tangled up on the floor and fighting to see who could stand up first. A pointless fight as if both were trying to bring down the other then neither of them would succeed in standing up at any time in the next ten or fifteen minutes.

"MICHELANGELO – RELEASE YOUR BROTHER RIGHT NOW!" Donnie roared, imitating Splinter rather effectively and making Mikey freeze, giving Raph the chance to get to his feet.

"Hey, I had him in a headlock – I was winning and you ruined my moment of glory and I don't usually get moments of glory. I just get called odd or ignored because you think I'm being stupid and then you eat my scrambled eggs and do I ever hear a 'thank-you' or a 'you rock, dude'? Nooo…"

"Mike," Leo cut in, "you were not winning. You had your arm round Raph's neck but he had a good grip on your throat so it was stalemate. You get called odd by Raph and should ask him if you want an explanation. We don't ignore you----"

"And believe me, we try," Raph interjected.

"Raph, that's enough. We eat your scrambled eggs because it's what you cook best and you're the best cook out of the four of us. And you never get any thanks because we thanked you the first thousand times you gave us scrambled eggs and then you told us, if I remember correctly although I'm sure Don will back me up, that you didn't need thanks because we are your brothers and it's just a part of everyday life."

"Well said, bro," Don whispered to his older brother.

"Thanks. Well Mikey?" Leo had his hands on his hips and he was looking expectantly at Mikey.

"Um, yeah…I remember…I'm just going to, um, clean up and decorate my corner of the shack…"

"_Your_ corner?"

"Yeah, _my_ corner. You know? The corner where I sleep?"

"Get on with it, Mikey. Raph – just leave it. Remember, Mikey happy is better than Mikey bored. At least this way he won't be wreaking havoc all over the island and driving the inhabitants so crazy that they isolate us to one area with no food or shelter." Donnie flung an arm out in front of his hot-tempered brother to stop him going for Mikey and Leo marked them off a corner of the shack each after Casey, April and Splinter said they would take an area in the middle of the floor if the four reptilian brothers really wanted the corners that badly. And it was probably a good idea, Leo thought, to keep all four of them separate before Raph completely flipped out and battered one of them to a pulp. Leo began setting up a few blankets in his corner while the others all did the same and soon they were ready to go back out and help with the rubbish sifting again…but not before Mikey had decorated the walls with several amusing drawings. They were humorous adaptations of each person staying in the shack. Raph was drawn in a bridesmaid's dress with smoke coming out of his ears. Leo was on all fours with a collar and lead being held by Splinter. Donnie was cross-eyed and had brains bulging out of his ears into the frying pans either side of him. April and Casey were dressed to get married except April was in a suit and Casey was in a dress. Mikey himself wasn't on there but he was certain that one of his brothers would add him to the collection of art at some point in the near future.

Sure enough, by that evening Mikey's portrait had joined the others in the shack…all four of them. Casey, Leo, Donnie and Raph had all made their own interpretation of Mikey. Casey's was of Mike in a tutu with exaggerated lips (obviously coated with lipstick although the portrait wasn't colour). Leo's was of Mikey's head on a scruffy mongrel's body and the scruffy mongrel had all four legs chained up and it was a very fat dog. Donnie's picture was of Mikey drowning in a sea of soda with pizza-fish biting Mikey's hands and legs. And Raph's picture was of Mikey in a dress with an apron over the top and extra long eyelashes. The apron read 'shoot the chef' and instead of arms Mikey had the wings of a chicken.

"That was uncalled for guys – couldn't you all have worked on one picture together?" Mikey asked, sniffing slightly when his brothers and Casey showed them their 'masterpieces'.

"You didn't exactly flatter us."

"I don't mind my picture," Casey admitted sheepishly, "I can even forgive you for drawing me in a dress. And Raph," he turned to his hot-headed friend, "you do make a great bridesmaid…"

"Casey that was _not_ the thing to say to him!" Donnie hissed frantically in Casey's ear.

"See, Raph? I always said you would look good in a dress. Maybe I'll buy you one for Christmas or something…" Mikey beamed, backing off slightly when he realised that a low growl was emitting from Raphael and it was growing steadily louder with each comment made. Leo decided enough was enough and that he had to intervene.

"Come on guys, if Raph is feeling delicate and hormonal then we must respect his feelings and you mustn't irritate him in any way."

"Leo…" Raph snarled, "If you value your life then you'll shut up right now. And you will also run very, very fast."

"Running isn't my favourite sport – can't we settle this with a spar instead?"

"You just want to spar don't you?" Raph was disbelieving.

"We're all gonna get really out of shape if we don't keep up the training."

"Stuff sparring when I can wrestle with Casey and beat him to a pulp…you go practice your precious katas by yourself." Raph clapped Casey on the back and watched in satisfaction as Leo strode out of the small shack in a huff.

"And with Mr. Perfect out of the way I can get down to dealing with you and those comments you were making about my dress."

"Sorry, Raph," Mikey practically groveled at Raph's feet, "please don't hurt me!"

"Too late for apologies…" Raph cracked his knuckles.

"Haha – then I must side with Leo – LEO! RAPH'S ATTACKING ME!" Mikey screeched making his voice sound convincingly panicked. Before Raph could do anything he was pinned to the floor by his older brother who had thrown himself into the room when Mikey had called out. Mikey grinned at Casey, who was dumbfounded,

"That always gets them going. Raph was gonna fight me and Leo wanted to fight with Raph so this way Leo gets what he wants and I get to watch as he kicks Raph's stubborn butt!"

"Very cunning, Mikey," Donnie said, ducking as one of Raph's Sais flew dangerously close, "but may I suggest that we leave them to it. And may I also suggest that you oblige."

"You got it Don, my man." Mikey gave his brother the thumbs up and followed him and Casey out of the room. He turned in the doorway to look at his fighting brothers, "and you might want to improve your aim, Raph. And good luck, Leo – not that you need it or anything."

Casey, April, Donnie and Mike all returned to the shack to find Leo and Raph undergoing a lecture from Splinter, who had only just seen the drawings on the wall. But it seemed that Raph was getting the brunt of the telling off and Mikey tried to remain out of sight as they all entered the shack.

"Michelangelo," Splinter said, not even looking at his youngest and most mischievous son, "you will come here and explain to me why there are drawings all round the room of your brothers, Mr. Jones, Miss O'Neill and myself."

"Um, yeah, about that…" Mikey struggled to think of an excuse. April looked round and noticed the pictures for the first time and blushed a deep shade of crimson when she saw the picture of her and Casey. She caught Casey's eye and looked away quickly but didn't pull away when Casey took her hand. Donnie caught this gesture out of the corner of his eye but held his tongue. There would be no chance of Casey getting up the courage to officially ask April out if he was getting ceaseless ridicule from Raph and Mikey for it. Leo would probably join in with the joking but he wouldn't resort to blackmail, like Raph would, or pictures and blunt questions, like Mikey, so Don decided that he might mention it to his older brother at some point and then confront Casey and ask why he hadn't asked April to go out with him yet.

"I'm sorry, Sensei but when you said 'decorate the shack' I assumed you meant to literally decorate the shack so I waited until you'd gone and thought that this might lift the tension a bit."

"It did lift the tension for a while but now your two brothers are going to be punished severely and I think you should join them."

"But you just said---"

"I said it lifted the tension, yes, but it also caused embarrassment and fighting amongst yourselves and therefore you shall be punished."

"But Donnie and Casey did pictures of me."

"And, as much as I dislike retaliation, in this case you deserved it." Splinter held up his hand before Mikey could cut in again, showing that the conversation was closed.

"Great, so now I get punished too." Mikey mumbled as he joined his brothers to do twenty flips and then clean the drawings off the walls of the shack unless the subject of each drawing said that they could stay. But, as expected, everyone said they wanted their drawings taken down or at least replaced with a more flattering picture. The only people who didn't say anything were April and Casey. They didn't say anything and snubbed Raph when he asked them what they wanted done about the picture. So the three brothers who were cleaning the shack left the drawing up.

The rest of their group returned an hour later and everyone settled down to sleep. But when you have an entire army of ninjas, a gang of thugs, the leaders of each of those groups out to get you and the knowledge that you're putting everyone close to you in danger it's extremely difficult to have a peaceful and uninterrupted night's sleep. But it was not the nightmares that woke Raphael that night; it was the sound of panicked shouting. He leapt up and looked around but everyone was still asleep. He left the shack and was greeted by a chaotic scene. The homeless were running round and a thick cloud was making it near impossible to see more than three feet ahead at any one time. Raph took a deep breath but choked and his eyes widened in utter horror. It wasn't a cloud, it was smoke. The island was on fire!

"Shit," Raph cursed under his breath, backing into the shack and into the terrified form of his youngest brother, "Mike, wake the others. The island's on fire!"

"W…what?"

"Wake – the – others! Unless you want to be turtle toast, that is!" Raph pushed his little brother back towards the others in their group and woke Splinter and Donnie while Mikey woke Casey, April and Leo.

"Leo! Leo, wake up! The island's on fire, Leo, and I'm scared!" Mikey felt like he was five again. He was trembling in terror and was relieved when his older brother's arms hugged him and pulled him to his feet.

"We're going to get out of here." Leo said, quickly thinking of a plan of action to save their shells, "Raph, you take April and Casey with you and get them off the island. I'll take Mike and Don and we'll figure out what caused this. Sensei, what are you going to do?"

"I shall leave the island with your brother, Mr. Jones and Miss O'Neill. Once we are safe, I shall send Raphael back to help you. If you are confronted by a battle then you will need all four of you."

"Yes, Master Splinter," Leo bowed and then rushed out of the shack with Donnie and Mikey close behind him. They would have to keep in sight of each other if they were to succeed here.

"Raph, we can't get out that way! It's blocked!"

"We can shift it – you wanted the quickest way off the island and this is it. It's either this or we get split up in the mayhem back in the centre." Raph replied, helping Casey to move an abandoned car that was blocking the way to the water. There were several large obstacles in the way but it was the quickest route off the island and Raph was desperate to get back to his brothers.

"I'd rather chance the mayhem!"

"Don't worry, April, we'll get out this way." Casey reassured her as he and Raph shifted the first car. Next thing to shift was the large heap of tyres.

"Mind out the way, Case," Raph walked back and took a run up on the tyre heap, sending the tyres rolling all over the place. Now they just had to get over a couple of rubbish heaps. The fire was spreading fast and if it reached where they were then they would be caught in the blast from the abandoned car so they had to move quickly. Once at the top of the second heap they could see the water, reflecting the flames and also the exhausted looking reflections of a large turtle, two humans and a rat. Raph turned to look behind him and realised with a start that the fire was catching onto the car. Any minute it would explode.

"What is it, Raph?" Casey asked, turning round.

"JUMP!" was Raph's only reply and the three jumped as the car exploded, sending a fireball hurtling straight through the middle of the rubbish heap they were stood on and throwing a huge amount of the city's refuse into the water.

"Come on, we can do this." Leo and his two youngest brothers were fighting through the crowds of homeless people to get to the edge of the island. They had about five minutes before the entire island would be engulfed in the flames.

"It's no use, Leo; we'll never make it to the edge!" Don yelled to his brother.

"I'm not taking us to the edge," Leo called back over his shoulder and moving off up a still unlit pile of rubbish to get a view of the island. Donnie and Mikey followed him and soon the three of them could see the whole of the illuminated island, flames dancing round the centre like a ring of snakes waiting for someone to fall mercy to them so they could lap the victim up with their fiery tongues.

"It looks kinda pretty when you really think about it."

"Yeah, but it's deadly and we have to find who's responsible." Leo whispered.

"Look over there!" Don pointed. Leo's gaze followed Don's finger to where a small, black boat was leaving the island.

"Come on!" Leo ordered and the three of them dashed down the side of the rubbish heap and sprinting across the centre of the island where the fire had not yet spread and reaching the other side, gasping for breath. Without a second thought, Leo dived into the water leaving Donnie and Mikey on the shore where they were snapped into action by the roaring and crackling of fire behind them. They followed their brother and soon caught up with the rowing boat. Grabbing it from either side, they hauled themselves up to surprise whoever was on board…but what they got was what they least expected.

"Professor?!"

"I am most apologetic, gentlemen, but I am not the criminal for whom you search. I was merely trying to escape the blaze and from where I was on the island it would have been impossible to escape any other way."

"Sorry if we startled you, Professor," Donnie apologised, looking thoroughly guilty, "but we saw you rowing quickly away from here and on a different route from everyone else and assumed you were the person we were looking for."

"Don't worry about it, my friend, we all make mistakes at some point in our lives and I have a theory about that…"

"Uh, yeah, professor, I'm sure we'd all love to hear your theories but we can't right now because we have a total fyromaniac on the loose and need to catch him."

"That's _pyro_maniac, Mikey," Donnie corrected, rolling his eyes.

"That's what I said!"

"No, you said fyromaniac, shell for brains."

"Oh, ok, but they sound pretty much the same so I don't see the problem."

"Mikey, just shut your mouth for once." Raph snapped, "We need to catch this guy before he causes any more trouble."

"I may not be the filth you are looking for but I did see someone who looked rather suspicious."

"What did he look like?"

"He was clad in metal armour with deadly spikes protruding from various limbs on his armour. He could pierce any one of you with them."

"Oh that's real encouraging." Raph muttered impatiently, ducking back underwater and surfacing on the opposite side of the boat where he spoke to Leo in a low whisper. Leo just nodded solemnly and the two of them disappeared under the surface of the water. Donnie and Mikey excused themselves from the Professor's company and followed their older brothers.

Leo and Raph surfaced, gasping for air, under the docks. They clambered up onto the wooden decking and looked around for any signs of danger. But, as was now a tradition, the danger was looking for them and found them quicker than expected.

"I hope you liked my firework display."

"Nah, you needed some real rockets for a start so we could blast your ass into space and get rid of you and your stupid ninja goons once and for all."

"Harsh words from someone who is surrounded and about to meet his doom…after he's watched his precious brothers perish first." Shredder snarled maliciously.

"You will not touch him." Raph's voice was low and threatening as he stepped in front of Leo, Sais ready for a fight.

"Oh no, Leonardo will be the last of your brothers to die. I was thinking more along the lines of killing _these_ pieces of garbage!" Shredder's Foot Elite brought out a struggling Mikey followed by Hun with a distressed Donnie.

"No," Raph gasped.

"But I am not a savage man and nor am I a murderer. So I will give you a choice. You may give yourself and Leonardo up in return for the lives of your brothers. Or you may give up your Sensei for all your lives or you can let these two pieces of filth die and then you die anyway."

"There is no choice in this."

"Not even giving yourself up?"

"Not if it means Leo has to die. You will fight us fairly. You may kill us in the fight at any point if you must but we must fight as a family. I will not die at your hand without a fight."

"Hun, break his neck," Shredder pointed at Donnie. Hun's lips curled into a vicious and murderous smile. Donnie's eyes widened and he kicked out at Hun, aiming for where he knew it would hurt. He had a direct hit and scrambled over to his two brothers stood opposite Shredder. Mikey was still struggling against the Foot Elite but Shredder waved his hand the Foot Elite released Mikey. He joined his brothers and was shaking nervously from a combination of his ordeal and the fact that Shredder had just released him.

"I do not need to fight you; I have a new weapon on my side…" he threw back the cloak he had been wearing and pulled out a pistol. It was not the most powerful gun he could've bought but it was probably all he needed. No amount of training could help the Turtles with guns. One shot and they would be dead. Shredder took aim but they were all stood so close together that they couldn't tell who he was aiming at. Shredder gave a short, bark-like laugh and shot. The noise the gun gave off as it shot was loud and it terrified the Turtles. One of them should have dies but Shredder's aim left something to be desired. But he hadn't missed…

"Hang in there. It's gonna be ok," Mikey reassured his brother. He and Raph were carrying their fallen brother while their remaining uninjured brother was scouting up ahead to make sure no-one was following them. They didn't know exactly where they were going but they had to get hold of some medical supplies.

"Hey, bro, is the coast clear up there?" Raph called into the darkness ahead of him.

"Yeah," came the reply, "now get up here right now, I found a garage we can hide in and I got some medical supplies from a pharmacy I found earlier."

"Right, we're there," Mikey and Raph ran towards the garage, carrying their bleeding brother as he moaned in agony as he drifted in and out of consciousness. They finally reached the garage and slumped to the floor and gave their brother as much reassurance and treatment as they could by cleaning the wound and wrapping a bandage tightly around him just above his abdomen. Now, they had to keep regular lookouts for Splinter, Casey, April or any kind of danger that could be approaching and also keep an eye on their brother, who was in agony even though the bullet had been removed. Mikey sat beside him, worrying about the dangers of this new weapon; it scared him.

"Come on, bro, I need you. You have to help us beat this."

**A/N: -** Evil, ain't I? I left it there because the very next sentence of this story reveals who has been shot. I have left you two turtles to choose from so while you're reviewing you can let me know who you think will be shot…or even who you want to be shot – but I don't want reviews containing just that or nothing else, thank you!


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: - You** will need to read the author's note at the bottom for the explanation as to why who got shot got shot!

Mikey awoke to a low groan and realised that his brother was stirring beside him.

"Ugh, what happened?"

"Donnie, you're ok!" Mikey bundled his brother without a second thought and Donnie screamed with pain as one of Mikey's limbs connected with his gunshot wound. Upon hearing his brother's yell, Mikey hurriedly scrambled off of his brother, who was clutching at the bandages and almost desperately trying to loosen them to stop them touching the wound but stopped when he realised it hurt a lot more to take the bandages away. Raph was grumbling incoherently about something which Mikey assumed would involve Shredder. Leo yawned, stretched and stood up. He walked over to his two youngest brothers and bent down in front of Donnie.

"How're you feeling?"

"Like crap."

"That bad, huh? Well, we need to check on the wound to make sure there's no infection of any kind." Leo gently unraveled the bandages and ordered Raph to bring an antiseptic wipe from the first aid kit they had 'borrowed' from the pharmacy. He wiped Donnie's wound carefully and with very little resistance from the wounded Turtle save for a brief attempt to push Leo's hands away from the sensitive raw skin of the wound. Donnie was grateful to his brothers but he wasn't particularly fond of the pain…after all he was only a Turtle at the end of the day. He gritted his teeth together to hold back the scream that was threatening to erupt as the antiseptic wipe sent a stinging sensation up his right side. Leo was soon finished and had re-bandaged his brother while Raph and Mikey watched in silence, waiting to be told what to do. Donnie forced a small smile and flopped back against the wall and was asleep in seconds.

"What do we do now? Where do we go from here?" Raph asked Leo gloomily.

"Yeah, dude, how do we find the others and get a safe place to stay?"

"I don't know. This battle has just got a lot more complicated."

"You're telling me," Raph snorted.

"We need to get some sort of food and drink or we'll be in a lot more trouble than we are now. We also need to find somewhere safe to keep Donnie until he's in a fit state to walk. And we also have to find the others. We'll rest up by day and search for the others by night. One of us stays on guard here each night while another of us searches for the others and the other searches for food."

"So who's doing what tonight?"

"Any volunteers for any of the jobs?" Leo looked round hopefully.

"Uh, not trying to take the easy way out or anything but I think I'll stay here and keep an eye on Donnie, ya know?"

"Ok, so Mikey stays here. Raph, which of the other jobs do you want to do?"

"I'll search for food – you'll probably have better luck finding the others than I will…"

"Right; we leave at sunset."

Sunset came quicker than any of them would've liked and there was a silence as the three conscious brothers stood facing each other. If one of them was found by Shredder then what could they do to defend themselves? And with no back-up then they wouldn't stand a chance.

"So, when do I start panicking?"

"If we're not back by sunrise then get Donnie out of here as soon as possible without getting yourselves seen. If Shredder takes any of us then the others must keep moving, got that?" Leo spoke gravely as he faced his brothers and Mikey and Raph hesitantly placed their hands on Leo's in the middle of them all in a silent agreement. Leo glanced quickly at Donnie before turning to his red clad brother, "ok, Raph, let's go. You take the town and I'll check the docks."

"Got it – good luck, bro," Raph clapped his brother on the back as the two of them prepared to go on their separate missions.

"Yeah, you too," Leo replied. And then the two of them were gone and Mikey was left alone with Donnie. The responsibility now rested on his shoulders; if Raph and Leo didn't return then he would have to leave them behind – something he didn't want to do.

"Man, you'd think there'd be more food up for grabs but the place it being watched by swarms of police," Raph whispered under his breath in frustration. He was searching through the garbage and there was nothing. There were no shops still open but maybe…maybe there would be a take-out he could go to without being seen. _Impossible,_ he decided. Without his trench coat and with the Foot all over town he would be spotted before he could say the word 'pizza'. He walked down a dark alley and kicked a crumpled drinks can along as he fruitlessly searched for some food. But then he saw it, something so beautiful it made his mouth water. There was a pizza delivery boy walking along with a stack of about five pizzas. Raph crept forward to see where he was taking them. The boy disappeared into a building and came out about ten minutes later with one pizza still in his hand. He made sure the shadow hid him and called out, "hey, kid! You need that pizza?"

"What's it to you?"

"I'll pay you for it…"

"No point, it's ruined."

"What d'ya mean ruined?"

"I mean, I dropped it down the stairs and it got all screwed up so the dude on the top floor wouldn't pay for it. You can have it for free if ya want,"

"Really? Bring it over here, kid," Raph grinned in the shadows. The kid walked over and held out the pizza cautiously. Raph's hand shot out and grabbed it, opening the box and inhaling the rich smell of pepperoni on a thin base with extra cheese and tomato. He exhaled in pure bliss, "Thanks, kid, I won't forget this,"

"Nah, it's ok," the kid waved his hand and mounted his bike, driving off in a cloud of smoke.

"Pippy-roni's Pizzeria, huh?" Raph muttered to himself, "I will recommend you guys to the biggest pizza eaters in New York." He smiled and began going in search of any other useful items or any food and drink that would enable them to keep their strength up. He found the cord to an old dressing gown in a bin and used it to strap the pizza to his back so he didn't run the risk of dropping it and continued on his search.

Meanwhile, Leo was searching the area around the island. The fire service was there and putting out the flames while carting the homeless people off to somewhere where they could sleep in safety. He had to find the others before the firemen did. If the men found Master Splinter then they would be done for. Their mutant world would be exposed and they would then have a lot more than just Shredder and a gun to worry about. He cursed under his breath and slipped silently onto a boat and hid under a fishing net as a fireman shone his torch in Leo's direction. The thin and wavering beam of light moved slowly and steadily over the boat but no-one spotted Leo from where he was hidden. After the light moved on and all was dark, Leo crept out and saw a flash of movement in an alley in the shape of a rat. His heart was racing as he headed towards where he'd seen the movement but, when he got to the alley, there was no-one there. He looked round, bemused, squinting into the darkness to try and see who was there. He felt a warm breeze on the back of his head. _Wait a moment, _he thought, freezing, _breezes don't smell of garlic! Oh shit._ He turned round and was greeted by a gun, which pointed directly at his head.

"Shredder!" he exclaimed. How had Shredder managed to creep up on him so effectively like that without him noticing?

"Yes, Leonardo. And this gun is that which shot your brother."

"Are you going to shoot me?" Leo asked, trying to keep his voice calm and fearless but failing as his voice began to quaver.

"No."

"No?"

"I merely want to offload a burden onto your shoulders which I have carried since last night. I do not believe I could kill you without letting you experience the full guilt of what you have done."

"What _I've_ done?"

"I was aiming for you – you're the one I wanted to shoot, but when all four of you tried to move out of the way Donatello simply walked in front of you for a split second and that was when I fired. It's your fault he's wounded; although he would have been dead had I not moved my arm last minute in the heat of the moment."

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Guilt is the greatest destroyer." Shredder smirked and then vanished leaving Leo bewildered in the alleyway.

"My fault." He whispered, voice cracking as the full realisation of what was happening dawned on him. Shredder had been aiming for him and had Leo not tried to get them into a defensive position then maybe Shredder would've hit his original target. He shook off the guilt that was pressing down on him while he searched but knew it would return as soon as he had nothing to focus on. Shredder had planned it, of that he was certain, but he still couldn't get rid of the thought that it could've been his fault that Donnie was lying injured and scared in an old garage.

"Oh man, oh man, oh man, oh man," Mikey jumped up and down as he saw the first rays of light crawling through the streets of New York. Raph and Leo still weren't back and he was worried and hungry and Donnie wasn't looking too good.

"Had ya worried there, bro didn't I?" Raph's gruff tones echoed through the empty garage as he stepped into it and put down a large box of stuff.

"Yeah, you did. I guess Leo's still hiding up there and you're gonna try and fool me into thinking he's not come back."

"No – I haven't seen him. We went our separate ways and I've been nowhere near the docks."

"You haven't?"

"No. Why, hasn't he turned up yet?"

"Nuh-uh. I'm worried about him, Raph. I don't like the idea of him being out there in the daylight. What if something happened to him and he's been discovered by people and they take him off for experiments or something?"

"We leave here without him and get as far away as possible," Raph's voice was emotionless.

"NO! We can't do that! I know it was a kind of silent agreement and that's what Leo told us to do but you always never listen to him so, this once, I'm entitled to follow your lead even if I get throttled by Leo when he turns up."

"You mean _if_ he turns up."

"No, I mean when he turns up. You gotta have more faith in him. Give it a little while longer, please Raph? If he's not here by tonight then I'll search for him tonight and then we'll leave if I don't find him by midnight. Please?"

"Alright, but you'd better hope nothing finds us." Raph shut the garage door.

At about midday there was a knock on the garage door.

"Guys? Let me in," came Casey's voice through the door. Raph leapt to his feet and opened the door, hurrying Casey, April and Splinter into the garage.

"Is Leo with you?" Mikey asked them.

"He was but he said he needed time to think so he's gone off for a while. He'll be back by tonight." Splinter explained, smiling at his sons' relief on hearing their brother was safe. Donnie listened in on the conversation, keeping his eyes shut. His guess was that Leo blamed himself for what happened. Even if it wasn't his fault Leo would always blame himself if something bad happened to one of his brothers.

"Mikey…" he whispered, voice raspy. Mikey walked over and dropped to his knees in front of his brothers.

"Yeah, Don?"

"Where's Leo?"

"He's ok and he'll be back by tonight."

"But what if Shredder finds him?"

"Look, Don, I wanna go after him but I got Raph watching my every move like a hawk. I need a diversion."

"I can cause one of those. When I call Raph over then the others will follow. You get out when that happens and find Leo. Bring him back here and don't get yourself into any trouble, Mikey. Maybe you'd better convince Raph to go with you…"

"Nah, Raph-------" but Mikey was cut off by a yell from Raph.

"WHY THE SHELL DIDN'T YOU SHOW UP LAST NIGHT?!"

"I'm sorry, Raph, but I couldn't."

"WHY THE SHELL NOT?"

"Because I needed to think."

"WELL YOU CAN'T HAVE BEEN THINKING THAT SUCCESSFULLY IF YOU DIDN'T THINK OF ME AND MIKEY AND HOW WORRIED WE'D BE!"

"Raph, quit yelling. I'm not in the mood," Leo pushed past his brother but Raph grabbed him and swung him round.

"You're not going anywhere until you give me a proper reason for why you didn't show up."

"I MET SHREDDER, ALRIGHT?!" Leo shouted, swatting his brother's hand off his shoulder and making to leave the garage.

"You met Shredder?" Raph's voice cracked. Leo turned round again slowly.

"Yes."

"Did he hurt you?"

"No…not physically. He just wanted to talk, to tell me something."

"Tell you what, Leo?" Raph stepped forward.

"None of your business."

"WHAT DID HE TELL YOU, LEO?" Raph's voice rose dramatically in volume again as he yelled at his brother. Leo cowered and Raph stopped yelling. Leo had just cowered from him, something he'd never done in an argument unless Raph had started throwing hard objects at him.

"He told me the truth about when he shot Donnie…" Leo's voice was soft but dangerous.

"The truth?" Raph walked over to his brother so that no-one else would hear what Leo said, "What's the truth?"

"It was my fault he shot Donnie."

"He could've hit any one of us. He wasn't aiming."

"Yes he was. He was aiming at me but, when we tried to get closer together in defence, Donnie got into his line of fire. It should've been me that got shot, not Donnie."

"Leo, it wasn't your fault. Shredder's just trying to destroy you from inside out because you're too damn good at avoiding him and outwitting him and you're a great leader. And that's the truth because I don't give real compliments lightly. I thought you would be intelligent enough to know that Shredder was leading you on, but clearly not." Raph turned and walked back to the group that was now gathered round Donnie, who had distracted the attention from the quarrels of Raph and Leo. It wasn't until he heard the garage door shut that he realised something had gone wrong. Everyone turned round.

"Shit," Raph cursed as he realised that Leo had gone again.

"Nice going, Raph. I don't think you could've been more considerate if you'd tried." Mikey teased his brother, "you should go after him before he does something stupid."

"Leo doesn't do stupid stuff." Raph retorted.

"I thought you hinted that he wasn't intelligent in your little quarrel." Mikey whispered.

"You heard that?"

"Dude, the Mikester hears all, sees all and wants to know what food you found."

"There's a pizza in the box along with some flat soda and slightly stale bread and cake. I'm going after Leo." Raph sighed, leaving to go after his older brother. _Please don't do anything stupid,_ he thought worriedly as he ran towards the docks. That would be where Leo had gone and Raph had to follow him as quickly as possible, _Damn you, Leo, if you've done anything stupid – you'll only regret it later. Please be ok. Stupid brother, always causing trouble._

"RAPH!" a terrified screech pierced the crisp morning.

"Leo? LEO!" Raph picked up his speed and ran even faster. He was almost at the docks when he heard a gun being fired and a scream of desperation. Desperation but not pain. Raph had expected to round the corner to see Leo dead on the floor and braced himself for the worst but a searing pain cut into his left thigh. He cried out and sank down to the floor in agony. The pain was worse than any he'd ever felt. He heard the pounding of footsteps but everything was going out of focus and he could see three Leonardos sat beside him. His eyes were watering with pain and his vision was swimming.

"It's ok, Raph. I'm here. Oh God, Raph, I'm so sorry. This is all my fault. First Donnie and now you," Leo's voice was trembling.

"It's ok, Leo," Raph gasped through the bursts of searing pain. He felt Leo's arms lift him into a sitting position but felt too nauseous to speak any more or open his eyes to face his brother. Leo was checking the wound and Raph flinched as his brother's shaking hands came into contact with the wound.

"This is gonna hurt, Raph, but it's got to be done." Leo apologised as he pulled Raph's Sais out of his belt. He couldn't leave the bullet in the wound because, knowing Shredder, he may have put poison on the bullet. He used the longest spike of each Sais and got the bullet out after about ten minutes. Raph passed out through the pain but felt the Sais slipped back into his belt and Leo lift him up. He tried to cling to his brother but couldn't move.

"What happened?!" Mikey rushed forward and helped Leo lower Raph to the ground.

"He was shot, what does it look like?"

"Is the bullet still in there?"

"No, I removed it. I guess all Don's medical knowledge is rubbing off on me…"

"My sons, I will deal with Raphael. Michelangelo, fetch the first aid kit. Leonardo must rest."

"No, Sensei, I want to stay with Raph."

"You will rest, Leonardo. But first you will let Michelangelo clean your shoulder."

"What did ya do to it, Leo?" Mikey asked as he walked back and handed the first aid equipment to Splinter, who took out an antiseptic wipe and a bandage and handed them to Mikey. Mikey took Leo to one side and looked at his brother's shoulder, eyes widening in shock. He looked into his brother's face as if seeing him for the first time, "How did this happen, Leo?"

"Shredder stabbed me when I tried to stop him shooting at Raph." Leo muttered.

"No offence, dude, but it would have been so much easier to warn Raph."

"I tried but I only got as far as calling his name before they gagged me. Then I tried to knock the gun out of Shredder's hand but he stabbed me and then shot at Raph."

"Where did they go after that?"

"They left,"

"Just like that?" Mikey looked surprised but never took his eyes off Leo's shoulder as he cleaned it. He was gentle and, although clumsy a lot of the time, seemed to know what he was doing but then again they'd all fixed each other up enough times to know what to do in most situations.

"Just like that." Leo confirmed, grateful to Mikey for keeping conversation going so Leo couldn't concentrate too much on the pain as the wipe got into the wound. Mikey finished with the wipe and bandaged Leo's shoulder diagonally across his chest and then around his stomach area to keep the bandage in place. Leo flexed his arm and winced slightly. Mikey helped him up and they headed back over to Raph who was sat up and leant against a wall talking to Casey on the wall underneath the only small window in the garage, which was high up and barely let in any light.

"Do you think Shredder was trying to kill Raph?"

"Almost certainly but he didn't stop to see if he'd succeeded after he'd shot at Raph," Leo grimaced, receiving a grimace from Mikey in return. It wasn't often that the Turtles were petrified of a piece of shaped metal. They weren't scared of Katana or of Bo staffs but guns were different. The bullets shot like lightning out of the guns so you didn't have time to analyse the situation; you could only wait for the sharp pain to hit.

"We have to kill him."

"Stating the obvious there, Mikey," Donnie was crawling towards them (he didn't feel confident enough to walk).

"Yeah, but it's true."

"We know – but how do we defeat a guy with a weapon that we don't fully understand?"

"We could fight fire with fire." Donnie pointed out.

"But Shredder's not fighting with fire…" Mikey said, baffled.

"It's an expression, Mikey," Donnie chuckled, "we get a gun and use it to fight back."

"Where do we get a gun?"

"That's where Casey comes in. He knows tons of gangs with guns in their possession so all he has to do is steal them from the gangs."

"But none of us have used guns before."

"Casey will hide and spring his attack when Shredder aims for us."

"Hey, dude, isn't that a bit dangerous with you and Raph being injured?"

"It's a risk we'll have to take."

"No, I won't let you take that risk. You and Raph will stay with Casey and tell him when to shoot." Leo sternly told his brother.

"What?! Leo, you and Mikey can't handle all the forces of the Foot, Hun, the Purple Dragons and Shredder!" Donnie stared at his brother in disbelief at what Leo seemed to be planning, "I will help you. Raph can stay with Casey because he can't walk. I can manage some normal members of the Foot. Shredder will just shoot blindly – it's not as if he ever actually aims."

"He does." Leo whispered, "He was aiming at me when you got shot…you just got in his line of fire."

"Leo, it could've been any one of us. And if I moved in the way then that makes it my fault; I won't let you blame yourself for what happened to me. And Raph will literally murder you if you start blaming yourself for what happened to him."

"I'm sorry, Don, but I don't want any more of you getting hurt. You and Raph will stay out of the way and won't come into battle unless it's vital."

"I don't like this. Mikey, what do you think?" Donnie turned to his younger brother, looking for support.

"Sorry, dude, but I'm with Leo on this one." Mikey shrugged apologetically. Leo smiled at his brother in purple but only received a scowl in response. In a way, Donnie was right and it was likely that he and Mikey wouldn't stand a chance against Shredder and his forces. But Leo refused to let his already injured brothers join in with a battle which could result in one of them dying. And he'd planned for if his two injured brothers were discovered; he'd offer himself as a sacrifice but escape last minute. He didn't want any deaths or, if he could avoid it, any bloodshed in the battle. But, first things first, they had to get hold of a gun and find a way to lure Shredder into a foolproof trap so that there was no way he could escape from them. This war had gone on far too long and it was about time they ended it once and for all. And they knew that they had sworn to defeat him multiple times before and failed but this time just had to be different, because this time they had one thing on their side that Shredder would not expect; he and the Turtles would be fighting as equals with equal weapons.

**A/N: -** Don't worry Leo's Girl; Leo will get his moment of glory. Donnie was shot because when I looked back through the story I realised that there wasn't nearly enough Donnie action – he's got them out of trouble but he doesn't get into much of it. And as for the medical knowledge, when you hang round Donnie so much and go through so much of it then you kinda pick it up – it's the same with most things – but enough of my ramblings. Sorry this chappie was shorter but I am a little bit busy at the moment moving house and…umm…making emus for a carnival…honestly, you don't want to know!


	20. Chapter 20 It All Ends

**A/N: -** "We come to it at last – to the great battle of our time." _Gandalf – LOTR 3._

So here it is – the final installment. It's been amazing to have so many brilliant readers and you have no idea how much your reviews mean to me. I promise you that I will be back in the TMNT section if I am welcome. I hope you have loved this as much as I have (and, shamefully, I was practically crying when I wrote the last section.) So, read and enjoy and review for the last time…

"So when do we battle the Shred-head?"

"As soon as we have a gun to fight him with," Leo answered yet another of Mikey's seemingly endless questions.

"Oh, ok…but what about if he has secret weapons as well?"

"Mikey, just quit with the questions, alright? It's getting on everyone's nerves," Raph snapped from where he was trying to get some sleep, "and besides, some of us are trying to sleep here."

"Sorry, dude, but I wanna go into battle as well prepared as I can be so we at least stand a chance." Mikey tried to justify his torrent of questions to the others.

"Yeah, but does it have to feel like a quick-fire quiz round on some sort of game show? Is that really necessary?" Raph returned.

"Aw, who asked you anyway?"

"Mikey, Raph, that's enough," Leo intervened, "we aren't getting anywhere by arguing over silly things."

"That's rich coming from you," Raph snorted.

"Yeah, you're always fighting with Raph over silly things."

"That's different."

"Why is it different?" Mikey persisted.

"Because, when Raph and I fight, one of us could normally walk out for some space afterwards, whereas right now we're confined to one room, so can we try to keep the fighting to a minimum?"

"Whatever," Mikey half agreed. Raph just grunted and Leo took that to mean yes. The brothers sat in silence, each trying to read the others' thoughts as they contemplated the battle ahead. They would battle by the docks as they could make a speedy escape into the water if things took a turn for the worse.

That week was spent in hiding and everyone was on a short fuse by the end of it. Casey hadn't managed to get hold of a gun but thought he had spotted somewhere where he could get hold of one as he'd been down to a pizzeria. He'd had to wear an old hat Raph had found in a dustbin before he'd been shot. This was because everyone in New York was under the impression that he and April were dead. But, when the time was right, that would have to be rectified. After all, they couldn't stay dead forever.

"GUYS! I GOT A GUN!" Casey burst through the door on Sunday night at about eleven o'clock and was greeted by a series of moans and groans.

"Case, do you have to do that?"

"Do what? And anyway, does it matter? I got a gun, guys!" Casey was as hyperactive as Mikey was after several super-size pizzas with extra pepperoni and multiple cans of soda.

"You did?" Leo now sat up, yawning as he stood and walked over to inspect the weapon Casey was proudly offering to him. He took it warily and looked it over, curling a finger around the trigger and testing the aim. There was a glint in his eyes suggesting a lust for revenge which had lain dormant for so long, unsatisfied and undisturbed. Casey moved forward and took the gun from the eldest turtle. He took it over to where Raph and Donnie were propping themselves up against a wall. Raph eyed it greedily as Donnie inspected it.

"It's of a good quality, Casey. Where did you get it?" the purple clad turtle queried.

"From a guy who owed me a favour; I helped him out of a tight spot and he owns a small business selling guns and knives so I figured I could get one off him cheap."

"You did good, Case," Raph looked impressed, "mind if I take a look?"

"No problem. Give Raph the gun, Donnie,"

"Whoa, not a good idea, dudes, he'll kill me with it!" Mikey cowered behind Leo.

"No, I won't," Raph retorted, adding softly under his breath, "I'm more inclined to torture first…" he grinned cruelly. Mikey gave a girlish shriek and ran to hide behind Splinter and April, who were looking rather apprehensively at the gun.

"Raphael, stop teasing your brother." Splinter ordered sternly, although the soft features on his face gave away the slight amusement he held in watching his sons bicker among themselves.

"So when do we get to go kick Shredder's filthy, stinking butt?" Raph asked eagerly.

"We cannot let this linger any longer, my sons. We shall fight the Shredder tonight. If some of us perish then I must urge the others to leave and get themselves out of danger, whether the Shredder has been beaten or not. I do not wish to risk any of your lives but I have no choice. Miss O'Neill I must request that you stay here. If we do not return by mid-morning tomorrow then you may be permitted to look down by the docks provided you keep yourself out of sight. If none of us survive then you can decide upon a story as to why you disappeared for so long and did not show yourself, letting all believe you were dead."

"I'm sorry, but I want to be a part of this tonight, even if I only wait in the wings. But I have to see the outcome."

"I too am sorry, Miss O'Neill, but you must stay here – I forbid you to follow us to what will most likely be our deaths. Come, my sons, we leave now." Splinter led the way, followed closely by a silent and grim Leonardo. Mikey saluted April and dashed after Leo. Donnie and Raph helped each other up and followed as fast as they could manage. Only Casey remained behind, looking guiltily at April. He pulled her into an awkward hug and a tear rolled down his face.

"You don't have to go," April whispered. She knew it wasn't a wise thing to say but she wanted Casey for herself, and knowing it was selfish didn't change the way she felt.

"I do – the guys are the best friends I've ever had. I love them like brothers; I can't let them down, and Raph is counting on me more than anyone. It's all hanging on the timing of my shot – if we lost Leo or Mikey because of me then he'll never forgive me."

"I know, I'm sorry. You have to be with them and stick with them to the end." April pushed him away slightly, tears staining her cheeks. Seeing the salty paths down his face reassured her on the sincerity of what he'd said. She bit her lip and knew she had to say something.

"I have to go, April," Casey, looking disappointed, turned to leave.

"Casey, wait----" April touched his arm lightly.

"Yeah?"

"I love you, Casey Jones," April smiled tearfully, pulling him towards her, their lips locking together in a passionate kiss. No words could describe how Casey felt at that moment and he could only gawp as they broke apart. Finally, he found his ability to speak again.

"I love you too…April O'Neill." Casey smiled, waving once as he left the garage. April waited until he'd gone and the garage door had shut and then she broke down and sobbed hard, knelt down, head in her hands and leaning against a wall. She knew in her heart of hearts that Casey had to be with Raph and the others but she just couldn't bear the thought of never seeing him again. Unfortunately, that was a fact that she would have to be prepared to face.

"Ok, guys," Casey had caught up with the others and was talking to the four turtles. Splinter had snuck off somewhere to conduct his own plan for if things didn't work out as planned, "I will fire as Shredder pulls his gun from his belt. He won't have a chance to aim. If by some unlikely problem I miss then you will have to use the moment of shock to kick the gun from him and it will have to become a square fight. Ok?"

"You'll do fine, Casey. You won't miss by much if you do miss so you'll hit Shredder even if you're out by a little. Remember, the target is the back of his neck, where he has no armour to protect him." Leo reminded Casey of the plan for the fifth time since Casey had caught up with them. He was feeling slightly nervous as his and Mikey's lives were held in the balance in the fight with Shredder while Raph, Donnie and Casey were in danger of being discovered. And none of them had a clue what Splinter's plan was so that left a figure of doubt in their minds even though they generally trusted their Sensei with anything and everything.

"And if ya do miss," Mikey whispered to Casey so no-one else could hear, "make sure you get him somewhere else where there's not too much armour…if you see what I'm saying…"

"Got it…good luck, Mike," Casey clapped the youngest of his four friends on the shell.

"Thanks, dude, but you'll need it more than me."

"You're sure you guys won't need our help?" Raph asked Leo worriedly. He didn't like the idea of leaving his brothers at the mercy of the Shredder.

"We'll be fine, Raph, don't worry. Shredder won't pull his gun out until he doubts his ability to win. And I trust Casey, as does Mike and he won't let us down. And he'll need you and Don up there to make sure that none of the Foot spoil our plan."

"Yeah, you're right." Raph sighed, following Casey as the vigilante climbed up the ladder on the side of a building. Donnie just hugged each of his two remaining brothers in turn before following up on to the roof of a large shipping company.

"Well, Mikey, this is it…" Leo put an arm round his youngest brother, who was shaking a little but trying desperately to hide it. He was supposed to be the carefree one and if he showed negativity now then he and Leo would lose their nerves.

"You are not going to face them, Master?" a Foot ninja struggled to conceal his surprise.

"I shall face them…but first I shall surprise them. When I raise my fist into the air I want you to shoot the one called Leonardo. He must perish before the others. They have their back-up on the top of the shipping company warehouse because of injury so I suggest you leave them. They are incapable of anything that could threaten my victory. Now, go, and do not fail me."

"Shall I shoot him in the head?"

"No…I want that honour myself. Shoot him in the leg or around the abdomen. That will be most effective and I shall finish him off myself." Shedder's voice was thick with evil and malice. He strode out to meet the two turtles, the oldest and youngest of the four brothers that had caused him so much trouble over the last couple of years.

"So, you have decided to challenge me once more. Only this time, two of your party are injured and I am about to make that three." Shredder raised his fist and a split second's silence followed. Leo and Mikey made eye contact and were about to lunge for Shredder when a sudden shot rang out around the docks. Mikey jumped about a metre into the air and looked round nervously but Shredder hadn't drawn his gun. He turned to Leo to see what he made of the situation but Leo was knelt on the floor, clutching his side.

"Leo," Mikey knelt beside his brother and tried to prise Leo's hand away from his side. He eventually managed it and felt faint as he saw an ugly wound on Leo's side. He had been shot, but by who?

"Mike…we have to keep fighting," Leo staggered to his feet and drew his Katana. Mikey put a hand on his brother's chest.

"No, Leo, you can't fight." Mikey protested weakly, but nothing would sway Leo's decision.

"I have to. For the revenge we all want."

"What the shell?!" Raph leaned over the side of the building. He'd heard the shot and had seen Casey's face go white as a sheet. He looked down on the battle, pushing Casey away from the edge so he could recover from the shock of whatever he'd seen. There was Leo and Mikey fighting Shredder as planned but Leo was nowhere near as fast as usual and kept stopping. Then Raph saw why; a gaping gunshot wound was bleeding profusely with every twist and turn Leo made to dodge the Shredder's onslaught of attacks. Mikey was trying to keep Shredder busy but it wasn't working. He was thrown roughly into Leo and both tumbled along the docks. They blearily got to their feet and Leo grabbed at Mikey for support.

"Raph, what is it? What was the shot?" Donnie asked, as he joined Raph. Raph pointed and opened his mouth to say something but no sound came out. Donnie followed Raph's finger with his eyes and opened his eyes wide at the sight of their two brothers having real problems with the Shredder.

"We have to get down there," Raph's voice shook.

"NO!" Casey hissed, stepping up to the edge again. He took aim at the back of Shredder's neck and shot. Shredder only had time to whirl round before a bullet whistled past him, just about missing his throat. He pulled his gun out and turned back to the two he was battling and took aim at Leo's head. Leo froze and Mikey began to move towards Shredder, Nunchuks at the ready.

"One step closer and your brother dies," Shredder growled. Mikey stopped, looking upset and glancing his brother's way. Leo knew that if he moved then Shredder would shoot him but he wanted to curl up and try to make the pain disappear but he couldn't. But no-one saw Casey taking aim again.

"Try it, Shredder," Leo said bravely, knowing that his time was running out anyway.

"Very well, although shooting your brains out would be a little too easy. Maybe using a gun is also giving me an easy victory. Perhaps a Katana blade would be more efficient seeing as it is your weapon of choice." Shredder drew a Katana from his belt and raised it to strike Leo while keeping the gun aimed on Mikey with the other hand.

"LEO!" Raph shouted from the rooftops. Shredder turned and Leo gathered the last of his strength to plunge his Katana into the exposed flesh of Shredder's armpits. At the same time, Shredder turned back to him and stabbed him in the left shoulder above the collarbone. Leo's body was screaming in pain as the blade pierced his flesh.

"Oh, that's it," Mikey snarled, uncharacteristically, and lunged for Shredder, his Nunchuks knocking off Shredder's helmet and then connecting with the side of Shredder's head on the second swing and dazing the villain. At the same time, Raph was half clambering and half falling down the ladder at the side of the building to get to his brothers. Casey was taking aim at Shredder's head and getting ready to fire. They only had two bullets as Casey hadn't had enough money to buy any more. Donnie was holding off the two Foot Elite ninjas that had decided to show up and fight.

"Come on, come on," Casey mumbled as he kept the gun steady. He couldn't fail this time or Leo and Mikey would be dead for sure. There would be no way that they could survive without his help. Raph had reached the floor and, with the Foot Elite in pursuit, Donnie was racing away from his enemies to join him. Casey saw Shredder hold his blade to Leo's throat and his gun to Mikey's head and knew it was now or never. He checked his aim one last time and shot.

The shot missed Shredder's head but got the original target of the back of Shredder's neck. Shredder lurched forward and Leo and Mikey moved backwards. Raph arrive on the scene with Donnie and they both limped forward and kicked the bleeding and choking Shredder off the pier. But now they had one more thing to deal with. The first shot had been fired from an alley and they had to take care of it before the gunman fired again. Leo was stumbling along dizzily and Mikey was trembling in shock. There was another shot from the alleyway and the turtles' eyes widened, each waiting for a burst of pain or a scream from one of their brothers but none came. Splinter emerged from the alleyway dragging an unconscious Foot ninja along behind him.

"Nobody tries to shoot me and gets away with it." He joked. The four brothers managed a smile but were soon distracted by a thump. Leo had fallen to the ground and was out cold. Mikey was also on the brink of collapse and it was only then that Raph realised his youngest brother had also been stabbed by Shredder but they'd all been so distracted by killing Shredder that they hadn't noticed Shredder stab Mikey in his right thigh.

"Mikey, are you ok?" Donnie asked while Raph knelt down to cradle Leo's head in his arms.

"I'll be fine – we need to save Leo."

"I don't know if he'll make it," Donnie said truthfully to his brother.

"He has to."

"Mikey, you have to brace yourself for the worst."

"No, I won't, he's got to make it; he just has to make it." Mikey's eyes were filling up with pain and grief. He wasn't about to give up on Leo.

"Donnie, he's having problems breathing. Do something!" Raph yelled, hugging Leo closer to him. It was the most emotion he had ever shown to his brother and it was just saddening that maybe it was too late for Leo to gloat over it.

"Raph, can you manage to carry him?"

"I don't know. But I will." Raph stated resolutely, picking his brother up and moving off in the direction of the warehouse. Splinter was walking alongside them and glanced back at Casey, who had climbed down to join them, silently thanking him for not trying to cheer Raphael up as there was simply no consoling the normally hot-headed turtle.

"APRIL! WE DID IT, BABE!" Casey screeched as he entered the garage. He had gone ahead of the others to sort some sort of first aid ready for Donnie to fix everyone up. But he was sure they had time for a quick reunion first. He took her in his arms and kissed her but broke it off swiftly as he remembered that they were not yet out of the danger…or at least some of them weren't. His face grew solemn.

"Casey? What is it?" April asked.

"We need to get as much first aid stuff as we can. Anything we can find,"

"Why? What happened?" April's voice became higher pitched as her concern for her reptilian friends.

"Mikey was stabbed but he'll be ok…Leo was stabbed and shot – he's in a bad way and Donnie doesn't know if he's gonna make it."

"Oh my God," April clamped her hands over her mouth, "is Raph ok?"

"He was really distraught, April. He was crying like hell and he just wouldn't let go of Leo. Mikey refused to believe that one of them could be about to die. It was terrible to watch and there was nothing I could do about it. If only I'd hit Shredder the first time I'd shot then Leo and Mikey wouldn't have been stabbed."

"Then Shredder didn't shoot Leo?"

"No, a Foot ninja from an alleyway shot Leo when the battle had barely begun but Splinter made sure he won't be bothering us again."

"Oh God, this can't be happening."

"I'm sorry, babe, but someone had to get hurt and we're lucky no-one died. If someone had dies then I don't know what the rest of us would've done." Casey set up everything he could find that could be a help to fix the others up and had just finished when they burst through the door, Raph in the lead in spite of the pain his leg was giving him. He had to save his brother and, although he was no medical expert, this was his part to play.

"Thanks, Casey," Raph said as he walked past and put Leo down gently on the pile of all the clothes from boxes that they had been using as blankets and there were different things including bandages and old sponges to stop the bleeding. Now, it was time for Donnie to do his stuff – the life of their eldest brother, their leader, was in his hands, and that was a pressure which he didn't want to accept the consequences of if he failed. This was the safety or destruction of his family and he knew that if Leo died then no-one would ever get over it. This was all the things he'd dreamed about in his nightmares and now it was true he couldn't quite believe it. It seemed more unreal than anything he'd seen in the terrifying dreams of his childhood that had returned in the past few weeks. Donnie was overcome - Leo just had to make it – Raph already looked like he was going to crack under the strain of grief and concern that was pressing down on the group.

Donnie worked until dawn, exhausted by the end but satisfied by his work. Leo would be ok and now the Foot was gone…

"Master Splinter," Donnie spoke to his Sensei as the elderly rat walked to stand beside him, "now the Foot is gone, can we move back to the sewer? No more hiding?"

"I believe we can, Donatello, I believe we can." Splinter smiled gently.

"Good, I'm sick and tired of all this running around – it all seems so pointless and it's cost us so much. It would be nice to settle down again."

"I quite agree, my son," Splinter placed a hand on his son's shell, "but for now you must rest. Will Leonardo recover?"

"Yeah, I think so. We just need to keep an eye on him – and keeping an eye on Mikey might also be a good idea."

"Very well, but go and rest; you have done a good job."

"Thank you, Sensei," Donnie bowed and, with one last glance over Leo, left to sleep in a corner. Splinter sighed and sat beside his eldest son. It was not what Splinter had expected. He knew that some of them would be injured but he had not been prepared for this. Leonardo was down again – it had ended how it had started. He looked around the garage and saw his other three sons all consumed in fitful slumber. April and Casey slept peacefully, Casey's arms wrapped protectively around April as he shifted slightly in his sleep.

The next night the group headed back to the sewers, Casey and Raph carrying Leo between them. Soon they were at the sewers and climbed down the man-hole and through the tunnels to their old lair. It was in a mess but everything was still there and after a quick clean-up operation it would be as good as new. The group were still exhausted and collapsed in various places; the four turtles and Splinter were in their own beds while April and Casey took the sofa.

_And so it ends. The same way it started. The Shredder is dead and we can finally relax to our peaceful lives of fighting crime once more. All this time we've been playing one big game of hide and seek with a deadly twist and we finally found and eliminated the best player in the game. Nothing can destroy us now._

_April and Casey are engaged and will send us pictures of the wedding and honeymoon via email. Donnie should have no problems getting that sorted. I can't wait to see how long it lasts. Raph has learned to be a little more tolerant of me - but only because he knows how gutted I am to not be able to practice for a few weeks, by Splinter's will, not my own. I've taken up my fearless leader mode once more, even if Raph still finds it irritating, while Master Splinter has started to put us back on track again and gives me extra meditation instead of physical training. Mikey is still being the optimist; so, all in all, things are just the way they were before this whole war started and before we were driven so close to destruction…_

_…And that's exactly the way I like it._

**A/N: -** So I end with Leo's thoughts – the way I always wanted to do since I began writing this. I may write a sequel at a later date if the demand is big enough. Once again, thank you for reading and please review for me and really help me to finish this with a bang. I love the TMNT to bits and this has been my favourite story to write so far.

Thank you and goodbye love ya all Dory's Human Replica aka Em XxXxXxXxX


End file.
